07
November
2019
Hotel occupancy rises on falling room rates
Qatar’s hospitality sector has posted a strong performance in August with hotels witnessing a significant rise in their occupancy rates, helped by a reduction in room rates.
The occupancy rate in hotels across Qatar increased to 63 per cent in during January- August period in 2019 compared to 58 per cent in the same period the previous year, according to Planning and Statistics Authority data.
“The major reason behind improvement in occupancy ratio is a reduction in room rates.O ccupancy ratio is inversely related to room rates. Lower room rates increase occupancy while high room rates reduce occupancy in hotels,” Marketing Manager of a hotel told The Peninsula.
The reduction in room rates was visible across all the categories of hotels. According to Planning and Statistics Authority data, the Average Daily Rate across all star categories on average declined 5 per cent year-on-year till August 2019.
The rising number of tourists was another supporting factor which worked in favour of hotels. Qatar welcomed 1.35 million visitors during the first eight months of 2019, posting an annual increase of 11 per cent.
Visitor numbers have shown improvement over the past months. Around 1.19 million visitors came to Qatar during the first seven months of 2019, reflecting a 10.7 per cent increase, compared to the same period in 2018.
Two-star and one-star hotels were the biggest beneficiaries in terms of attracting more guests. These hotels witnessed the highest increase in occupancy as their rates jumped to 74 per cent during the January-August period this year, compared to 60 per cent during the same period in 2018.
Three-star hotels also saw a significant rise in occupancy. The occupancy rate for such hotels increased to 75 per cent during January-August this year compared to 67 per cent in the same period the previous year.
The occupancy in four-star hotels increased to 65 per cent from 59 per cent, while five-star hotels saw their occupancy rising to 59 per cent from 56 per cent in first eight months of this year, compared to the same period in 2018.
The hospitality sector also saw a rise in the number of hotel rooms in the third quarter of this year. Qatar’s hotel inventory stood at 27,288 keys at the end of September 2019, spread across a total of 132 establishments.
Muntazah Plaza Hotel in Al Mansoura, Swiss Belinn in Al Sadd and Al Messila Resort & Spa in Al Messila were unveiled, adding a total of 398 keys during the third quarter of this year.
