Press Release 21/01/2015
Visitors to hotel establishments in the Basque Country increased by 6.2% in December 2014
The balance for 2014 closed with a rise in visitor numbers of 2.4% and a rise in overnight stays of 4.0%
There were 160,226 visitors registered in the hotel establishments of the Basque Country in December 2014, 9,318 up on the same month of the previous year, which is an increase of 6.2%, according to Eustat data. Visitor numbers increased in the three provinces: in Álava by 7.2%, in Gipuzkoa by 6.7% and in Bizkaia by 5.5%.
Furthermore, overnight stays registered in hotel establishments of the Basque Country in December 2014 reached 288,049, which was an increase of 10.6% on those registered in December of the previous year, that is, there were 27,594 more overnight stays. There was also a positive evolution in overnight stays in the three provinces: in Gipuzkoa they increased by 11.4%, in Bizkaia they rose by 10.6% and in Álava they were up by 8.8%.
The number of visitors from within Spain rose by 5.8% in the Basque Country compared to December of the previous year, whilst the number of visitors from abroad rose by 7.2%. Álava saw a decrease in foreign visitors of 5.2% and a rise in Spanish visitors of 9.7%. In Bizkaia the number of Spanish visitors was up by 3.6%, whereas the number of visitors from abroad rose by 11.1%. In Gipuzkoa there was an increase in foreign visitor numbers of 5.8%, and the number of Spanish visitors rose by 7.1%.
The average length of stay was 1.80 days last December, an improvement upon the 1.73 days average length of stay that was registered in December 2013. In Álava there was a rise from 1.71 days last year to 1.73 days in December this year; in Bizkaia it rose from 1.71 days in December 2013 to 1.80 days this December; and for its part, the average length of stay in Gipuzkoa rose from 1.76 days in December 2013 to 1.83 days this December.
There was an increase of 4.5 percentage points in the bed occupancy rate for the Basque Country overall, where it went from 31.4% in December 2013 to 35.9% in December this year. Álava witnessed an increase of 3.3 percentage points, dropping from an occupancy rate of 29.3% in December 2013 to a rate of 32.6% this December. Bizkaia saw an increase of 5.0 percentage points, going from a bed occupancy rate of 32.3% in December 2013 to a rate of 37.3% in December 2014. In Gipuzkoa the occupancy rate increased by 4.5 percentage points, going from 31.2% in December 2013 to 35.7% in December 2014.
The occupancy rate per room was also positive, up by 5.8 percentage points for the Basque Country overall, where the occupancy rate per room stood at 43.9%. In Álava it was up by 3.2 percentage points, standing at 39.4%; and in Bizkaia it increased by 6.6 percentage points, standing at 46.1%; whereas in Gipuzkoa it rose by 6.1 percentage points, standing at 43.2% occupancy per room.
The highest hotel bed occupancy rate in December this year was in Bilbao (43.2%), followed by Donostia/San Sebastián (42.0%) and Rioja Alavesa (35.5%).
Taking into account the day of the week, at weekends there was a higher occupancy in the Basque Country as a whole in December 2014, with 47.1% of places occupied, whilst the registered occupancy stood at 32.0% on weekdays.
2014 balance for hotel establishments: the number of visitors registered a rise of 2.4% and the number of overnight stays in the Basque Country was up by 4.0% compared to the previous year
There were 2,424,832 visitors in 2014, that is, 56,752 more than the previous year. The number of visitors rose by 5.9% in Álava and 4.6% in Gipuzkoa, but fell by 0.4% in Bizkaia.
Overnight stays in 2014 stood at 4,657,505, that is, 178,833 overnight stays up on the previous year. Overnight stays were up by 5.0% in Gipuzkoa, by 3.5% in Bizkaia and by 3.0% in Álava.
The average length of stay rose, going from 1.89 days in 2013 to 1.92 days in 2014 in the Basque Country, whilst the bed occupancy rate was up from 44.3% in 2013 to 46.4% in 2014.
The occupancy rate per room during the Immaculate Conception Bank Holiday (5,6 and 7 December) was 69.5% in the hotel establishments in the Basque Country
The number of visitors during the 2014 Immaculate Conception Bank Holiday increased to 28,350 in the hotel establishments in the Basque Country. These were visits that lasted from 5 to 7 December 2014 (3 nights). Over the same period there were 53,751 overnight stays in the Basque Country as a whole. In 2014 the bed occupancy rate during those days was 65.5%.
In rural accommodation, visitor numbers increased by 9.4% and overnight stays rose by 27.4% in December
Rural tourism establishments and country cottages in the Basque Country recorded a total of 23,113 overnight stays in December, with an increase of 27.4% with respect to the same month of the previous year. At provincial level, they were up 16.3% in Álava, by 40.0% in Bizkaia and by 24.8% in Gipuzkoa.
The bed occupancy rate stood at 20.1% with a rise of 5.0 percentage points from the figures obtained in December 2013. Álava recorded an increase of 4.3 percentage points, with a bed occupancy rate of 19.8%. In Bizkaia the occupancy rate was 22.3%, which meant an increase of 7.4 percentage points in relation to December 2013, and Gipuzkoa saw a rise of 3.8 percentage points to reach an occupancy rate this December of 18.9%.
There were 9,666 visitors to rural tourism establishments in the Basque Country in December, 9.4% more than the same month of the previous year. By province, in Álava the number of visitors was up by 3.7%, in Bizkaia there was an increase of 23.8%, and in Gipuzkoa there was an increase of 2.4%.
The 506 visitors originating from abroad signified an increase of 97.7% with regards to those received a year ago and represented 5.2% of the total number of visitors. For its part, the number of visitors from within Spain rose by 6.8%.
Finally, the average length of stay per visitor increased last December with respect to December 2013, going from 2.05 days a year ago to 2.39 this last month.
2014 annual balance for rural tourism: visitor numbers rose by 12.2% and overnight stays rose by 11.4%
There were 125,782 visitors to rural tourism establishments in the Basque Country in 2014, which was 12.2% up on the previous year, whilst overnight stays stood at 326,426, 11.4% up on 2013.
Visitor numbers increased in the three provinces: in Bizkaia they rose by 25.5%, in Álava they were up 10.4% and in Gipuzkoa they rose by 6.3%. Overnight stays also rose in the three provinces: by 21.0% in Bizkaia, 8.7% in Gipuzkoa and 4.7% in Álava.
The average stay per visitor fell slightly from 2.61 days in 2013 to 2.60 days in 2014. The bed occupancy rate was up, going from 20.0% in 2013 to 23.3% in 2014.
For further information:
Eustat - Euskal Estatistika Erakundea / Instituto Vasco de Estadística
C/ Donostia-San Sebastián, 1 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz
Press Service: servicioprensa@eustat.eus Tlf: 945 01 75 62
Further press releases on ETR - Survey on Tourist Establishments of the Basque Country
Databank on ETR - Survey on Tourist Establishments of the Basque Country