The hotel and catering sector in Galicia last year registered more than 21,000 establishments, which employed 66,825 people and 90.7% of which corresponds to the catering subsector. This business group closed the year in the region with a turnover of 4,768 million euros, representing 4.5% of the regional wealth.
These are some of the figures included in the 2019 Yearbook of the Hospitality Industry in Spain, presented by the Hospitality Industry in Spain, an entity of which the Provincial Association of Hospitality and Tourism Entrepreneurs of Lugo (Apehl) is a member.
In the analysis offered by this report in relation to the autonomous community of Galicia, it is reflected that the number of hotel establishments has evolved differently depending on the branch of activity. Thus, catering establishments have reduced their census due to the lower number of bars, with an increase in the rest (in total there were 19,052 catering establishments). Accommodation establishments, on the other hand, have continued to increase significantly (1,959 in 2018 compared with 1,776 in 2017). The balance sheet for the last eight years shows a lower number of restaurants and, especially, bars.
In the analysis by provinces, in all of them the positive evolution of catering establishments recovered with respect to the previous year, except in A Coruña where they were cut back, although in the balance of the last eight years the balance continues to be negative in the four provinces. In accommodation, on the other hand, there was a strong increase in all of them.
On the other hand, the report reveals that employment in restaurant services increased, although the rate of growth fell by half (an interannual increase of 5.1% compared with 10.9% the previous year).
Hotel prices, on the other hand, increased their interannual rate by one tenth in 2018 (2.0%), with a different evolution in the two branches of activity. Thus, in catering the rate of the previous year was repeated (1.8%) and in accommodation it increased 1.4 points (being 3.4%).
Creation of Competur
The Spanish hotel and catering industry and Cerveceros de España have agreed to promote COMPETUR as a platform for ideas and proposals to improve the competitiveness of the sector, a collaboration agreement that has the backing of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism as these two sectors are economically linked. Spain, surpassed only by Germany, is the EU country where beer provides more job creation in the hotel industry. For each job generated in the brewing industry, 55 are generated in the hotel and catering industry.
COMPETUR will work to promote the debate on the competitiveness of tourism by addressing issues such as the relevance of investment and support for sport, and therefore reflect on ways to keep Spain among the most competitive tourist destinations. It also considers it essential to increase notoriety and the number of cultural and sporting events held in Spain through the promotion of regional sport and culture, to maintain Spain among the safest tourist destinations and to differentiate the country’s brand worldwide through quality and responsible tourism.
The alliance also understands that you can not act for competitiveness without looking for ways to work for the support of employment and professionalization or the environment, which also integrates into their long-term proposals.