Staying in a hotel this summer is 25% more expensive than before the pandemic

2023-08-23 15:59:14

This summer all records will be broken in terms of occupancy and tourist turnover in Spain. All forecasts are very positive despite the rise in prices, with unbridled demand. The data for the month of July published by the INE on Wednesday reveal that staying in a hotel was 25% more expensive that month than in 2019, a year that set a record for the sector.

Specifically, a hotel night in Spain cost an average of 128.8 euros in July, well above the 102 euros it cost the same month before the pandemic and also 6% above the 121 euros last year. It is the highest figure since 2008, the last year that appears in the INE records. In addition, the average daily income per person (RevPAR) reached 96.5 euros, which represents an increase of 7.5% compared to the good figures of last year.

The most expensive tourist spot in Spain is Estepona (Málaga), with an average billing per occupied room (ADR) of 298 euros. By category, five-star hotels reached an average of 299 euros, four-star hotels remained at 134.8 euros, and three-star hotels cost an average of 110 euros per night.

The high prices are not reducing hotel occupancy, since the number of overnight stays has increased by almost 11% in the first seven months of the year compared to last year. During the month of July alone, more than 43.1 million hotel nights were reserved, 2.5% more than last year and at the same level as before the pandemic broke out.

shorter stays

Of course, the prices have shortened the stays. The average fell by almost 1% in July compared to a year ago, standing at 3.4 nights per traveller. Even so, in the accumulated of the first seven months the stay exceeds that of the same pre-pandemic period.

The most expensive tourist spot is Estepona, where the average cost of staying in July amounted to 300 euros per night

For Spanish travelers, Andalusia, Catalonia and the Valencian Community were the destinations chosen to stay in hotels last month, while foreigners opted for the Balearic Islands with 34.5% of the total overnight stays. They are followed by Catalonia and the Canary Islands, with 20.9% and 18.4% of the total, respectively.

The average occupancy in the month of July reached 70% of the places offered, already at the same level as before the pandemic. The Balearic Islands had the highest occupancy rate, up to 87.5%, followed by the Canary Islands with 75.8% of occupied hotel beds.

Travelers from the United Kingdom and Germany concentrated 25.5% and 16.6% of the total overnight stays of non-residents in hotels in July. Overnight stays by travelers from France, the Netherlands and Italy accounted for 8.6%, 4.8% and 4.4% of the total, respectively.