Press release of 22/11/2017

SURVEY ON TOURIST ESTABLISHMENTS. OCTOBER 2017

Visitors to hotel establishments in the Basque Country fell by 0.2% in October 2017

There was a 4.8% decrease in Spanish visitors, whereas foreign visitors increased by 7%

There were 272,006 visitors registered in the hotel establishments of the Basque Country in October 2017, 636 down on the same month of the previous year, which is a decrease of 0.2%, according to Eustat data. The number of visitors was up 2.8% in Álava, showed no noticeable change in Bizkaia (0.0%) and fell by 1.6% in Gipuzkoa.

Overnight stays registered in hotel establishments of the Basque Country in October 2017 stood at 522,239, which was a drop of 1.8% on those registered in October of the previous year, that is, there were 9,503 fewer overnight stays. There was a year-on-year upward trend in overnight stays in Bizkaia, with an increase of 0.3% compared to October last year, but there was a fall in overnight stays of 3.1% in Álava and 3.8% in Gipuzkoa.

The number of visitors from within Spain registered a decrease in October 2017, compared to October of the previous year, with a drop of 4.8% in the Basque Country as a whole. However, the number of visitors from abroad increased by 7.0%. In the case of Álava, the number of foreign visitors rose by 28.4%, but the number of Spanish visitors fell by 5.9%. In Bizkaia, the number of Spanish visitors was down by 4.3%, whereas the number of visitors from abroad rose by 6.9%. In Gipuzkoa there was a decrease in Spanish visitor numbers of 5.0%, and the number of foreign visitors rose by 2.6%.

This October the average length of stay was 1.92 days, below the average length of stay of 1.95 days registered in October 2016. However, in Álava there was a decrease from 1.86 days last year to 1.76 days in October of this year; in Bizkaia, between October 2016 and October 2017, the average length stay remained stable at 1.93 days; and finally in Gipuzkoa, the average length of stay fell from 2.01 days in October 2016 to 1.96 days in October 2017.

There was a decrease of 0.6 percentage points in the bed occupancy rate for the Basque Country overall, where it went from 58.5% in October 2016 to 57.9% in October this year. In Álava there was a rise of 1.1 percentage points, where it went from 50.5% to 51.6% this October. Bizkaia saw a rise of 1.0 percentage points, going from a bed occupancy rate of 58.0% in October 2016 to a rate of 59.0% in October 2017. In Gipuzkoa the occupancy rate fell 3.4 percentage points, going from 62.4% to 59.0%.

The occupancy rate per room also registered a decrease, with a 1.8 percentage point drop for the Basque Country overall, reaching 70.3%. In Bizkaia it was up by 0.2 percentage points, standing at 73.6%, and in Álava it decreased by 3.6 percentage points, reaching 62.4%. Meanwhile, in Gipuzkoa there was a drop of 3.7 percentage points, registering 69.3% occupancy per room.

The highest hotel bed occupancy rate in October this year was in Donostia/San Sebastián (69.2%), followed by Bilbao (66.8%) and the Rioja Alavesa (66.2%).

Taking into account the day of the week, at weekends there was a higher occupancy in the Basque Country as a whole in October 2017, with 71.8% of places occupied, whilst the registered occupancy stood at 53.0% 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 84.8 euros in October 2017, 3.1% up on the year before. The average rate stood at 76.0 euros in Álava, where it increased by 5.8%; 77.9 euros in Bizkaia, with an increase of 3.8%, and 96.6 euros in Gipuzkoa, where it went up by 1.8%.

The revenue per available room (RevPAR) in the Basque Country overall, which is dependent on the occupancy rate of hotel establishments, stood at 59.6 euros in October 2017, a 0.6% increase on October 2016. The RevPAR stood at 47.4 euros in Álava, 57.3 euros in Bizkaia, and 66.9 euros in Gipuzkoa.

The occupancy rate per room during the "El Pilar" Bank Holiday was 81.6% in the hotel establishments of the Basque Country

In the Basque Country as a whole there were 42,445 visitors and 87,667 overnight stays during the 2017 "El Pilar" Bank Holiday, over the dates of 11 to 14 October 2017 (4 nights), with an occupancy rate per bed of 74.1% and per room of 81.6%. In Álava there were 6,492 visitors and 13,434 overnight stays in the four given days and bed and room occupancy rates reached 76.6% and 84.0% respectively. In Bizkaia there were 19,680 visitors and 39,915 overnight stays, with a room occupancy rate of 71.8% and a bed occupancy rate of 80.6%. In Gipuzkoa there were 16,273 visitors and 34,318 overnight stays, with a room occupancy rate of 75.9% and a bed occupancy rate of 81.9%.

In rural accommodation, visitor numbers decreased by 5.8%, but overnight stays increased by 5.1% in October 2017

There were 13,458 visitors to rural tourism establishments in the Basque Country in October, 5.8% less than the same month of the previous year. By province, in Álava the number of visitors was down by 13.2%, in Bizkaia there was a drop of 8.4%, but in Gipuzkoa there was an increase of 0.2%. The 2,658 visitors originating from abroad signified a rise of 23.5% with regards to those received a year ago and represented 19.8% of the total number of visitors. For its part, the number of visitors from within Spain fell by 11.0%.

Rural tourism establishments and country cottages in the Basque Country recorded a total of 32,625 overnight stays in October, with an increase of 5.1% with respect to the same month of the previous year. At provincial level, there were increases in all three territories. In Álava they were up by 9.6%, in Bizkaia there was a rise of 6.9% and in Gipuzkoa they increased by 1.9%.

The bed occupancy rate stood at 25.0% with a rise of 0.6 percentage points from the figures obtained in October 2016. Álava experienced an increase of 1.3 percentage points, with the bed occupancy rate standing at 24.7%. In Bizkaia the occupancy rate was 25.9%, which meant an increase of 1.3 percentage points in relation to October 2016, and Gipuzkoa saw a fall of 0.2 percentage points to an occupancy rate in October 2017 of 24.7%.

Finally, the average length of stay per visitor increased this October with respect to October 2016, going from 2.17 days a year ago to 2.42 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