Andalusian hotels and cottages recorded a total of 714,592 overnight stays during the Christmas holidays (Dec 25-31). This represents a 10.5% increase compared to the same period in 2012 according to a survey “Encuesta Puntual de Ocupación” (EPO) conducted by the Department of Tourism and Commerce.
47.3% of all rooms in various accommodation facilities were booked during the holidays. This is 1.9% more than in the previous year. Hotels recorded the biggest increase among other facilities with 2.3% while cottages recorded a decrease of 6.8 % in their occupancy rate.
Furthermore, with respect to the location the coastline welcomed the highest number of overnight stays (82.5%). The province of Málaga took the lead with 42.7% of stays, which represents more than 300,000 overnight stays.
Additionally, the provinces of Málaga and Granada are the ones that recorded the highest occupancy rates, with 59.6% and 54.9% respectively. They are followed by Seville, Córdoba and Cádiz, all of them with the occupancy greater than 40% of the total rooms available during Christmas.
Andalusian hotels achieved the best results during this period compared to other facilities, recording a total of 695,000 overnight stays, which represents 11.7% more compared the 2012 Christmas season. Four and five star establishments were in the lead, as they managed to secure 65% of hotel stays. Occupancy of these hotels reached 48.4%, which is +2.3% compared to the same period in 2012.
The results of the survey exceeded the expectations of the sector. During the week prior to Christmas the average occupancy of Andalusian hotels was 43.6%.
As for cottages and farmhouses offering holiday accommodation, a total of 19,491 overnight stays were recorded. This represents a 21% decrease compared to the same period in 2012. Of note are the provinces of Málaga, Granada and Córdoba which exceeded 3,000 stays. The occupancy rate for this type of accommodation was 25.4% on average, reaching 51.2% on December 31.
The province of Granada reported the occupancy rate of 35.9%. It was followed by Seville (29.2%), Almería (27.5%), Málaga (27.3%), Cádiz (26.5%), Córdoba (22.1%), Huelva (18.8%) and Jaén (17.8%).