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Press release 21/10/2011

SURVEY ON TOURIST ESTABLISHMENTS (EETR) SEPTEMBER 2011

Number of visitors to the Basque Country rose by 7% in September 2011

The figures for July, August and September showed that there were 38,342 more visitors than in 2010, a 5% increase

There were 229,118 visitors registered in the hotel establishments of the Basque Country in September 2011, 14,386 up on the same month of the previous year, which is an increase of 7%, according to Eustat data. The number of visitors increased by 5% in Araba/Álava, 11% in Bizkaia and 2% in Gipuzkoa.

The number of Spanish visitors rose by 3% and foreign visitors were up by 14%. Spanish visitors increased their presence in Araba/Álava, where they rose by 9%, and in Bizkaia, where they rose by 8%, but they dropped 7% in Gipuzkoa. Foreign visitors increased in Bizkaia and Gipuzkoa, rising by 16% in both cases, but fell by 3% in Araba/Álava.

The greatest increase in Spanish visitors came from Andalusia, Castilla y León, Catalonia, Madrid and Navarra whilst there was a drop in visitors from Asturias, the Balearics, Valencia and Galicia, amongst others. The greatest number of foreign visitors came from Germany, France, Italy, Holland and the United Kingdom, whilst visitor numbers from Portugal, Austria and Belgium fell.

Registered overnight stays in September 2011 totalled 442,457, which was 7% up on the same month of the previous year, that is, there were 27,680 more overnight stays. The year-on-year performance of overnight stays was positive in Bizkaia, where there was a 12% increase, and in Gipuzkoa, up 4%, whilst in Araba/Álava there was a 1% drop.

The average length of stay remained unchanged compared to September 2010, with the figure for this month of September being 1.93 days for the Basque Country as a whole. By territory, in Álava/Araba it fell from 1.88 to 1.77 days, in Bizkaia it rose from 1.85 to 1.86 days and in Gipuzkoa it also rose from 2.05 to 2.10 days.

The bed occupancy rate saw a rise of 5%, standing at 54.68% for September 2011. This rise affected the provinces of Bizkaia, which registered an increase of 8%, and Gipuzkoa, which was up 4%, whilst in Araba/Álava there was a drop of 3%. The bed occupancy rate in Álava/Araba rose from 48.05% in September 2010 to 46.84% in September 2011, in Bizkaia it went from 49.28% to 53.13% and in Gipuzkoa it rose from 57.90% in September 2010 to 60.49% in the same month of this year.

In the summer months of July, August and September, visitor numbers to the Basque Country rose by 5% with regards to the same period of 2010, which was an increase of 38,342. They rose in the three provinces: in Araba/Álava they were up 4%, in Bizkaia 9% and in Gipuzkoa 1%. There was a positive performance of 7% in the number of overnight stays in the same period. In Araba/Álava the rise was 3%, in Bizkaia 12% and in Gipuzkoa 2%. There was a slight rise in the average length of stay, which went from 2 days in 2010 to an average of 2.02 days in the summer months of 2011, and the occupancy rate stood at 61.25% in those three months, 5% more than in the same period of the previous year.

RURAL TOURISM

The number of visitors and overnight stays in the Basque Country fell by 6% in September 2011, in relation to the same month of the previous year

There were 10,366 visitors in rural tourism establishments of the Basque Country in September, 6% less than the same month of the previous year, with negative results in the three provinces. In Bizkaia there was a drop in visitor numbers of 9%, in Gipuzkoa it was 6% and in Araba/Álava it was 1%. Spanish visitors were down 9% as a whole in the Basque Country. they fell by 14% in Bizkaia, 10% in Gipuzkoa, and in Araba/Álava there was no noticeable change (0%). There was a 23% increase in the number of foreign visitors to the Basque Country as a whole, with a rise of 40% in Gipuzkoa and 18% in Bizkaia, whereas Álava/Araba saw a decrease of 13%.

The number of overnight stays in rural tourism establishments stood at 27,316 for the month of September, which was a 6% drop on the figures for September of the previous year, with decreases of 14% in Bizkaia, 6% in Araba/Álava and 2% in Gipuzkoa.

The average stay remained unchanged in the Basque Country as a whole compared to September 2010, standing at 2.64 days. By provinces, there was a 5% drop in Araba/Álava, with the average visitor stay going from 2.36 days in September 2010 to 2.24 days in the same month of this year; in Bizkaia the average stay also dropped by 5%, going from 2.71 days to 2.58 days in September 2011 and in Gipuzkoa there was an increase of 4%, where the average visitor stay went from 2.70 days to 2.82 days in September of this year.

The bed occupancy rate registered a decrease of 9% in the Basque Country as a whole, going from 24.52% to 22.34%, as a consequence of the drops experienced in the three provinces. In Bizkaia it fell by 13%, in Araba/Álava by 12% and in Gipuzkoa there was a drop of 5%.

In the months of July, August and September 2011 there was an increase of 1% in the figures for visitor numbers in Basque rural tourism establishments with regards to the same months of the previous year, which by provinces translated as growth in Araba/Álava of 1 and 2% respectively, and a drop of 1% for Bizkaia. There was a total drop of 2% in overnight stays, negatively affecting all three provinces, with falls of 2% in Araba/Álava and Gipuzkoa and 4% in Bizkaia. The bed occupancy rate fell by 5%, standing at 39.82% in this three month period, and the average stay stood at 3.49 days for the Basque Country as a whole.

Hotel and Rural Tourism Establishments in the Basque Country. Monthly results