Press release of 22/08/2017
(This press release has been revised due to an error in the assignment of the dates for BBK live)
Visitors to hotel establishments in the Basque Country increased by 0.2% in July 2017
While the number of foreign visitors grew by 4.2%, that of visitors from within Spain fell by 3.3%
There were 314,401 visitors registered in the hotel establishments of the Basque Country in July 2017, 677 up on the same month of the previous year, which is an increase of 0.2%, according to Eustat data. The number of visitors was up 1.8% in Álava and 0.2% in Bizkaia, whereas there was a drop of 0.4% in Gipuzkoa.
Furthermore, overnight stays registered in hotel establishments of the Basque Country in July 2017 reached 636,502, which was a drop of 0.5% on those registered in July of the previous year, that is, there were 3,159 fewer overnight stays. The year-on-year figures for overnight stays were negative in the three provinces. In Álava they were down by 0.9%, in Bizkaia 0.6% and in Gipuzkoa 0.2%.
The number of visitors from within Spain fell by 3.3% in the Basque Country compared to July of the previous year, and the number of visitors from abroad increased by 4.2%. In the case of Álava, entries of Spanish visitors saw a 0.3% downturn and a 5.1% increase in the case of foreign visitors. In Bizkaia, the number of Spanish visitors was down by 3.3%, whereas the number of visitors from abroad rose by 4.4%. In Gipuzkoa there was a decrease in Spanish visitor numbers of 4.9%, and the number of foreign visitors rose by 3.6%.
This July the average length of stay was 2.02 days, below the average length of stay of 2.04 days registered in July 2016. In Álava there was a drop of 1.83 days last year to 1.78 days in July of this year; in Bizkaia it fell from 1.98 days to 1.96 days; and finally in Gipuzkoa, the average length of stay in July 2017 was practically the same number as in July 2016, 2.20 days in both cases.
There was an decrease of 0.6 percentage points in the bed occupancy rate for the Basque Country overall, where it went from 70.1% in July 2016 to 69.5% in July this year. In Álava there was a rise of 2.4 percentage points, where it went from 60.0% to 62.4% this July. Bizkaia saw a decrease of 0.3 percentage points, going from a bed occupancy rate of 67.8% in July 2016 to a rate of 67.5% in July of this year. In Gipuzkoa the occupancy rate fell 2.6 percentage points, going from 77.5% to 74.9%.
The occupancy rate per room was 78.0% and experienced a fall of 1.8 percentage points for the whole of the Basque Country with respect to the previous year. In Álava it was down by 0.2 percentage points, standing at 70.9%, and in Bizkaia it decreased by 1.8 percentage points, reaching 77.4%. Meanwhile, in Gipuzkoa there was a drop of 2.5 percentage points, registering 81.5% occupancy per room.
The highest hotel bed occupancy rate in July this year was in Donostia-San Sebastián (83.1%), followed by Gipuzkoa Costa (78.6%) and Bilbao (72.6%).
Taking into account the day of the week, at weekends there was a higher occupancy in the Basque Country as a whole in July 2017, with 76.7% of places occupied, whilst the registered occupancy stood at 66.6% on weekdays.
Finally, with regards to the profitability indicators of the sector, the average daily rate (ADR) of hotels in the Basque Country stood at 102.2 euros in July 2017, 6.6% up on the year before. The average rate stood at 74.4 euros in Álava, where it increased by 2.8%; 82.6 euros in Bizkaia, with an increase of 7.3%, and 134.2 euros in Gipuzkoa, where it went up by 6.1%.
The revenue per available room (RevPAR) in the Basque Country overall, which is dependent on the occupancy rate of hotel establishments, stood at 79.7 euros in July 2017, a 4.2% increase on July 2016. The RevPAR stood at 52.8 euros in Álava, 63.9 euros in Bizkaia, and 109.4 euros in Gipuzkoa.
The occupancy rate per room during the Getxo International Jazz Festival stood at 67.2% in the hotel establishments of Bizkaia
Visitor numbers during the 2017 Getxo International Jazz Festival increased to 20,815 in the hotel establishments of Bizkaia. These were visits that lasted from 28 June to 02 July 2017 (5 nights). In this same period, the total number of overnight stays was 38,929, with an occupancy rate per room of 67.2%.
The occupancy rate per room during the BBK Live Festival stood at 92.1% in Bilbao
Visitor numbers during the 2017 BBK Live Festival increased to 15,920 in the hotel establishments of Bizkaia. These were visits that lasted from 6 to 8 July 2017 (3 nights). Over the same period there were 33,371 overnight stays in Bizkaia as a whole.
In Bilbao there were 9,098 visitors and 20,332 overnight stays, with a room occupancy rate of 92.1%.
The occupancy rate per room during the Donostia-San Sebastián Jazz Festival stood at 83.0% in Gipuzkoa
Visitor numbers during the last few days of the Donostia-San Sebastián Jazz Festival, between 20 and 25 July (6 nights), rose to 24,406 in hotel establishments in Gipuzkoa. In this same period, the number of overnight stays in Gipuzkoa was 51,890, with an occupancy rate per room of 83.0%.
In Donostia-San Sebastián there were 13,023 visitors and 29,988 overnight stays, with a room occupancy rate of 93.0% over these days (between 20 and 25 July).
The occupancy rate per room during the Vitoria-Gasteiz Jazz Festival stood at 79.2% in Álava
Visitor numbers during the Jazz Festival, between 11 and 15 July, rose to 7,838 in hotel establishments in Álava. In this same period, the total number of overnight stays in Álava was 14,613, with an occupancy rate per room of 79.2%.
In Vitoria-Gasteiz there were 5,749 visitors and 10,667 overnight stays, with a room occupancy rate of 86.5% over the five given days (from 11 to 15 July).
In rural accommodation, visitor numbers decreased by 2.3% and overnight stays fell by 5.9% in July 2017
There were 21,955 visitors to rural tourism establishments in the Basque Country in July, 2.3% less than the same month of the previous year. By province, the number of visitors was up by 4.0% in Álava, in Gipuzkoa there was a rise of 0.3%, but in Bizkaia there was a decrease of 9.3%. The 5,693 visitors originating from abroad signified a rise of 16.1% with regards to those received a year ago and represented 25.9% of the total number of visitors. For its part, the number of visitors from within Spain fell by 7.4%.
Rural tourism establishments and country cottages in the Basque Country recorded a total of 63,491 overnight stays in July, with a decrease of 5.9% with respect to the same month of the previous year. At provincial level, there were decreases in all three territories. In Gipuzkoa they were down by 8.3% and in Álava and Bizkaia there was a drop of 2.3% in both cases.
The bed occupancy rate stood at 45.8% with a fall of 4.9 percentage points from the figures obtained in July 2016. Álava also recorded a decrease of 0.9 percentage points, with a bed occupancy rate of 25.5%. In Bizkaia the occupancy rate was 44.8%, which meant a decrease of 3.2 percentage points in relation to July 2016, and Gipuzkoa saw a fall of 8.1 percentage points to an occupancy rate this July of 55.0%.
Finally, the average length of stay per visitor decreased this July with respect to July 2016, going from 3.00 days a year ago to 2.89 this last month.
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