Coyuntura Turística

Good expectations for the summer season hoping to reach or exceed the average occupancy figures of 60% last year

The occupation in the hotel establishments of Galicia got in May its best data since there are records, 41% exceeding the records of the last xacobeos, according to data from Coyuntura Turística Hotelera published by the INE. According to this report, the tourists who visited the Community last month stayed longer on the trip, thus allowing the average stay to grow by around 4.5%.

This record is set against a backdrop of stable demand for tourism and shows positive results for the sector, despite the fact that the total number of passengers fell by 4% and the number of overnight stays by 0.5% compared to the same period in 2017. However, the occupation rose almost two points, helping to deepen the achievement of an increasingly competitive destination at all times of the year.

Thus, in May, Galicia received 380,000 passengers who made 680,000 nights, a figure higher than that recorded in the period between 2011 and 2016. The positive evolution can also be seen in other variables such as rates, which rise by 1%, and hotel profitability. The latter is measured through the RevPAR, the average income per available room, which increased to 4.7% in the fifth month of the year in the Community.

Improve prices and occupancy

In spite of a somewhat weak month of June in which the weather has not been particularly good, the expectations of the tourism sector for July and August are positive, and we expect to see figures similar to those for the summer of 2017. Last year, in July and August, there were just over 1.5 million tourists and more than four million overnight stays, record figures that allow for a narrow margin for improvement and which, to a large extent, will be linked to the climate that accompanies us at this time. However, the prospects for the sector are good, since the reserves are once again encouraged and the initial plan is to maintain last year’s occupations, with an average of 60% for the whole of Galicia. Beyond the occupation, the sector figures its expectations in increasing the prices and the average expense of the traveller, which would allow to improve the profitability of the sector.