Press Release 22/08/2016

SURVEY ON TOURISTESTABLISHMENTS (ETR) JULY 2016

Visitors to hotel establishments in the Basque Country increased by 6.8% and overnight stays by 8.3% in July 2016

It was the number of visitors from the rest of Spain that increased the most this July, by 10.7%

There were 313,724 visitors registered in the hotel establishments of the Basque Country in July 2016, 20,012 up on the same month of the previous year, which is an increase of 6.8%, according to Eustat data. Visitor numbers increased: in Álava by 9.8%, in Bizkaia by 6.7% and in Gipuzkoa by 5.8%.

Overnight stays registered in hotel establishments of the Basque Country in July 2016 reached 639,661, which was an increase of 8.3% on those registered in July of the previous year; that is, there were 49,247 more overnight stays. There was also a positive year-on-year variation in overnight stays in the three provinces: in Álava they increased by 15.1%, in Bizkaia they rose by 8.0% and in Gipuzkoa they were up by 6.7%.

The number of visitors from within Spain rose by 10.7% in the Basque Country compared to July 2015, whilst there was an increase in the proportion of foreign visitors of 2.8%. Álava registered an 8.1% increase in visitors from Spain, and a 12.6% increase in foreign visitors. In Bizkaia the number of Spanish visitors was up by 15.2%, whereas the number of visitors from abroad saw a 2.3% drop. In Gipuzkoa there was an increase in Spanish visitor numbers of 6.0%, and the number of foreign visitors rose by 5.7%.

The average length of stay in July was 2.04 days, longer than the average stay of 2.01 days registered in July 2015. In Álava there was an increase from 1.74 days last year to 1.83 days in July this year; in Bizkaia it rose from 1.95 days in July 2015 to 1.98 days this July; and for its part, in Gipuzkoa the average length of stay was also up from 2.18 days in July 2015 to 2.20 days this July.

There was an increase of 3.8 percentage points in the bed occupancy rate for the Basque Country overall, where it went from 66.3% in July 2015 to 70.2% in July this year. Álava experienced a rise of 7.2 percentage points, increasing from 52.9% to 60.1%. Bizkaia saw an increase of 3.3 percentage points, going from a bed occupancy rate of 64.5% in July 2015 to a rate of 67.8% in July of this year. In Gipuzkoa the occupancy rate increased by 3.1 percentage points, going from 74.4% in July 2015 to 77.5% in July 2016.

The occupancy rate per room also registered an upward trend, with a 3.9 percentage point increase for the Basque Country overall, where the occupancy rate per room stood at 79.8%. In Álava it was up by 10.7 percentage points, standing at 71.2%; in Bizkaia it increased by 2.5 percentage points to reach 79.2%; whereas in Gipuzkoa it rose by 2.7 percentage points, standing at 84.0% occupancy per room.

The highest hotel bed occupancy rate in July this year was in Donostia-San Sebastián (84.5%), followed by the Gipuzkoa Coast (83.4%) and Bilbao (73.4%).

Taking into account the day of the week, at weekends there was a higher occupancy in the Basque Country as a whole in July 2016, with 77.0% of occupied places, with the registered occupancy standing at 66.9% on weekdays.

The occupancy rate per room during the Getxo International Jazz Festival stood at 68.6% in the hotel establishments of Bizkaia

Visitor numbers during the 2016 Getxo International Jazz Festival increased to 22,800 in the hotel establishments of Bizkaia. These were visits that lasted from 1 to 5 July 2016 (5 nights). In this same period, the total number of overnight stays was 39,818, with an occupancy rate per room of 68.6%.

The occupancy rate per room during the BBK Live Festival stood at 92.6% in Bilbao

Visitor numbers during the 2016 BBK Live Festival increased to 14,920 in the hotel establishments of Bizkaia. These were visits that lasted from 7 to 9 July 2016 (3 nights). Over the same period there were 31,947 overnight stays in the Bizkaia as a whole.

In Bilbao there were 8,595 visitors and 19,766 overnight stays, with a room occupancy rate of 92.6%.

The occupancy rate per room during the Donostia-San Sebastián Jazz Festival stood at 86.0%

Visitor numbers during the last few days of the Donostia-San Sebastián Jazz Festival, between 20 and 25 July (6 nights), rose to 22,704 in hotel establishments in Gipuzkoa. In this same period, the number of overnight stays in Gipuzkoa was 51,407, with an occupancy rate per room of 86.0%.

In Donostia-San Sebastián there were 11,740 visitors and 28,632 overnight stays, with a room occupancy rate of 93.1% over these days (between 20 and 25 July).

The occupancy rate per room during the Vitoria-Gasteiz Jazz Festival stood at 80.3%

Visitor numbers during the Jazz Festival, on 12 and 16 July, rose to 6,843 in hotel establishments in Álava. In this same period, the total number of overnight stays in Álava was 15,693, with an occupancy rate per room of 80.3%.

In Vitoria-Gasteiz there were 4,297 visitors and 11,448 overnight stays, with a room occupancy rate of 87.2% over the five given days (from 12 to 16 July).

In rural accommodation, visitor numbers increased by 10.7% and overnight stays were up 18.3% in July 2016

There were 22,472 visitors to rural tourism establishments in the Basque Country in July, 10.7% more than the same month of the previous year. By province, in Álava the number of visitors rose by 5.8%, in Bizkaia there was a rise of 13.2%, and in Gipuzkoa there was an increase of 14.1%. The number of visitors originating from abroad saw a rise of 18.1% with regards to those received a year ago and represented 20.5% of the total number of visitors. For its part, the number of visitors from within Spain rose by 8.8%.

Rural tourism establishments and country cottages in the Basque Country recorded a total of 67,494 overnight stays in July, with an increase of 18.3% with respect to the same month of the previous year. At provincial level, they were up 7.3% in Álava, Bizkaia saw an increase of 11.9% and in Gipuzkoa they rose by 24.0%.

The bed occupancy rate stood at 50.7% with a rise of 6.0 percentage points compared to the figures obtained in July 2015. Álava also recorded a decrease of 0.2 percentage points, with a bed occupancy rate of 26.4%. In Bizkaia the occupancy rate was 48.0%, which meant an increase of 4.9 percentage points in relation to July 2015, and Gipuzkoa saw a rise of 9.6 percentage points to an occupancy rate this July of 63.1%.

Finally, the average length of stay per visitor increased with respect to July 2015, going from 2.81 days a year ago to 3.00 this last month.

For further information:

Eustat - Euskal Estatistika Erakundea / Basque Statistics Institute C/ Donostia-San Sebastián, 1 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz Press Service: servicioprensa@eustat.eus Tel: 945 01 75 62 Further press releases on EETR – Survey on Tourist Establishments of the Basque Country Databank on EETR – Survey on Tourist Establishments of the Basque Country