Europe hotel overview – STR Global analysis

16 December 2016



Many European hotel markets are struggling amid security concerns and political tensions. While several countries in Western and Northern Europe have posted performance declines, hotels in Eastern Europe thrived in Q3 2016, benefitting from increases in domestic and international tourism. STR Global gives insights on the region’s current outlook with its breakdown of the top and bottom five European countries in terms of RevPAR growth for Q3 2016.


Top five

Russia

With the weakening of the ruble, international travel has become more expensive for Russian citizens, resulting in an increase in domestic travel. This has translated to 16 consecutive months of year-on-year revenue per available room (RevPAR) growth for the country, and Q3 2016 marked Russia’s highest actual occupancy level (71.0%) for Q3 since 2007.

Slovakia

Slovakia has witnessed 25 consecutive months of year-on-year RevPAR growth, benefitting from strong demand with an increase in international arrivals, keeping occupancy levels high. In Q3 2016, hotels in Slovakia also recorded a 15.8% increase in average daily rate (ADR), the nation’s strongest growth rate for Q3 since 2005. 

Poland

The only month of 2016 in which Poland’s hotel market recorded a decline in a key performance indicator was March, when occupancy dropped marginally by 0.3%. Occupancy reached 83.7% for September, the highest monthly occupancy level since 1996. Poland has seen an increase in domestic and international tourism.

Ireland

Q3 2016 marked Ireland’s tenth consecutive quarter of double-digit RevPAR growth. Occupancy increased by 0.5% to 89.6%, while ADR reached a record high at €133.02. Ireland’s recent performance growth has mainly been driven by increases in ADR.    

Portugal

Hotels in Portugal recorded a 0.9% increase in occupancy to 86.6%, along with an 11.2% increase in ADR to €123.36 in Q3. This resulted in a 12.7% RevPAR growth to €106.88. Overall, this was Portugal’s best Q3 performance since 1999. The country has benefitted from an increase in arrivals, possibly due to tourists avoiding countries facing security concerns.

Bottom five

Austria

In Q3, Austria’s hotel market posted a 0.1% increase in occupancy to 81.1%, a record high. ADR, on the other hand, dropped 2.2% to €100.49, leading to a decline in RevPAR for the quarter. This performance, however, followed a strong summer in 2015, when ADR increased by 13.3% in July and 9.7% in August.

Italy

Occupancy dropped 2.6% to 73.3% for Italian hotels in Q3, while ADR fell 1.5% to €161.27, resulting in a 4.1% decline in RevPAR. But these performance levels are all in comparison with the previous year, when Milan hosted the EXPO 2015, which brought in over 20 million visitors, according to EXPO organisers. Looking at Q3 2016 on its own terms, this was Italy’s second highest occupancy level for Q3 since 1996.

France

Following the attacks in Paris in January and November 2015, and in Nice in July 2016, France’s hotels have struggled. Demand has been in decline since Q4 2015 and, as of September, was down 5.2% compared with the first nine months last year. In Q3, the country posted a 14.2% RevPAR decline, almost exactly in line with Paris’s 13.9% RevPAR decline. Meanwhile, some French markets are faring better, notably Bordeaux, with a 30.1% increase in RevPAR for the first nine months of 2016.

Belgium

Belgium continues to suffer as a result of the March 2016 terror attacks in Brussels, with a double-digit decline in RevPAR for Q3. Demand has been the main factor driving down this performance, as occupancy declined by 18.2% to 62.3% in Q3, the country’s lowest actual occupancy level since 2009.

Turkey

Multiple terror attacks, in combination with political unrest and the recent coup attempt, contributed to a RevPAR decline of 49.5% in Q3 2016. This marks the sharpest decline for Turkey’s hotel market since1996. Meanwhile, the nation’s supply has grown 2.2% as of September year-to-date. While Turkey is obviously struggling in terms of demand, supply has actually been rising steadily, currently at +2.2% this year to date compared with the
same time period in 2015.  



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