According to a Deloitte report focusing on Portuguese tourism, in 2016 the number of overnight stays in the country exceeded 53 million, whilst the revenues surpassed the two-million-euro mark, with the occupancy rate being greater than 63%.
The regions of Madeira (77.5%) and Lisbon (72.5%) have recorded the highest occupancy rate in 2016, with the country’s capital showing as well the highest average price per room in the whole country (80,65 euros). Regarding the highest average stay, Madeira (5.39 days) and Algarve (4.49 days) are the overall ‘champions’.
All regions have seen their revenues per available room (RevPAR) grow and Lisbon, yet again, is the one that stands out, amassing an average revenue of 59.18 euros, which is to say that there was an increase of 5.58 euros compared to last year.
Portuguese tourism sector also grew in terms of concentration of facilities, Algarve and the Northern Region are in front (22% each), followed by the Central Region (21%), Lisbon (15%), Alentejo (8%), Madeira (7%) and Azores (5%).
The Southern region holds the first place in relation to the number of accommodation units, accounting for 32%, with Lisbon winning the silver medal with 21%.
The Seasonal index shows that the months of July, August and September are those that record the highest number of stays.
From an international point of view, the occupancy rate in Lisbon has actually surpassed a number of major European cities, like Rome, Madrid and Paris, nonetheless, it still falls short to London, Amsterdam and Barcelona; but when the RevPar (revenues per available room) is analyzed, the city ranks below the European average.
Hotels are still the most common types of accommodation among tourism facilities, accounting for 73% of the total. They are followed by tourist apartments (10%), apartment hotels (7%), rural hotels (5%), tourist villages (3%) and inns (2%).
The ratings of tourist facilities show that three (33%) and four (38%) stars are the most prevalent ones at the national level. The two-star facilities rank third with 17% and the five-star ones stay in fourth place with 8%.
Pestana Hotels & Resorts/Pousadas de Portugal (5,2% of the total), Vila Galé Hotéis (3%) and Accor Hotels (2,4%) sit on the podium of the national ‘ranking’ which gathers the 20 hotel chains/entities that have the largest number of accommodation units.
“The year of 2016 was quite unique and historical for Portuguese tourism in terms of revenues, overnight stays, but also when considering the unprecedented growth in the number of facilities,” Miguel Eira Antunes, who is the Deloitte’s leader for Tourism, Hospitality & Services, said in a statement.
The consultant mentioned that 38 new hotel units are expected to open this year, the most part with four and five stars, particularly in Lisbon (18). The Northern and Central regions anticipate eight and seven openings respectively, the Algarve four and the Azores one.
For Jorge Marrão, the Real Estate Manager of Deloitte, “an upsurge in the interest shown by international investors in our country is now expected, which is a consequence of the increase in the rates of return of real estate assets.”
“Therefore, Portuguese tourism sector will continue to be a strategic element for our economy,” he concluded.
In May, the Portuguese Association for Hotels (AHP) informed that 83 new hotel units will open in the country until 2018, 41 already this year.
Next year, 42 new structures are expected to open across the country, Cristina Siza Vieira, chief executive of AHP, said.
António Jorge Costa, the President of the IPDT, believes that the sector will smash “new records” in 2017 and the results of the upcoming summer will be even better than in 2016.
The average confidence level was 84.3%, registering an increase of 23.2% when compared to the first assessment of the Institute for Planning and Developing Tourism (IPDT), carried out in March 2011, when it reached 61.1%.
“More than 75% of those who were surveyed believe that the summer of 2017 will be better than the one of 2016 in terms of revenues, overnight stays and number of tourists, with respect to the domestic market,” António Jorge Costa said. On the other hand, the foreign market should register an “even more positive evolution”, with an increase of more than 90%, according to the IPDT barometer.
The Turismo de Portugal association, in the national business survey entitled ‘Barómetro de Conjuntura’, predicts that the summer of 2017 will amass better results than last year’s summer. 75% of the tourist agents in Lisbon believe that a “clear-cut” growth for the region’s demand rate will be attained, whilst affirming that Germany, Spain, France, Netherlands, Brazil, Ireland, Russia and China are the countries accountable for this increase.