Turkey’s hotel occupancy rates rising but revenue still falling: Tourism association

ISTANBUL

Turkey’s hotel occupancy rates rose in March after months of decline thanks to a surge in the number of business meetings and the sharp rise in the number of Iranian tourists visiting Turkey during the Nevruz holiday. However, hotel revenues have continued to decline in the first quarter of 2017, a leading sector association announced on April 27. 

Hotel occupancy rates rose to 55.8 percent, up 5.3 percentage points year-on-year from March, the Hotels Association of Turkey (TÜROB) said in a statement based on the latest STR Global data. 

Hotel occupancy rates across Turkey increased to 52.3 percent in the first quarter from 50.1 percent in the same period of 2016. 

However, hotel revenues continued to decline in March, making Turkey a country which saw the largest revenue plunge across Europe in the first quarter of 2017, according to the release. 

Both revenue per available room (RevPAR) and the average daily rate (ADR), a measure of the average rate paid for rooms sold, decreased in the first quarter of the year. Turkish hotels’ ADR regressed to 57.2 euros in the first three months of the year from 74.2 euros in the same period of 2016. Their RevPAR also declined to 29.3 euros in the same period from 37.2 euros. 

Occupancy rates witnessed an increase mainly due to a rising demand for corporate business meetings and a spike in arrivals from Iran to Turkey during the Nevruz holiday, according to TÜROB. 

“We hope this trend will continue,” said TÜBOB President Timur Bayındır, while noting that most important for the sector is to see an increase in revenues. 


Alarming revenue loss in Istanbul hotels

According to the report, hotels in Istanbul again experienced the biggest decline in both RevPAR and ADR among all European destinations in March, although the city’s hotel occupancy rates rose to 56.1 percent from 52.2 percent in the same month of 2016. 

The city’s ADR and RevPAR decreased in March by 22.8 percent and 17 percent, respectively, compared to the same month of 2016, according to the release. 

The ADR regressed to 69.8 euros in March from 90.4 euros in the same month of 2016. 

The city’s RevPAR also regressed to 39.1 euros in March from 47.1 euros in the same month of the previous year. 

Hotel occupancy rates in the Mediterranean resort of Antalya rose to 55.1 percent in March from 49.8 percent in the same period of 2016, with a long-waited rise in RevPAR.