Visitors to hotel establishments in the Basque Country rose by 5.5% and overnight stays were up 1.9% in October 2019

The revenue per available room increased by 3% in hotels in the Basque Country

There were 296,538 visitors registered in the hotel establishments of the Basque Country in October 2019, 15,496 up on the same month of the previous year, which is an increase of 5.5% according to Eustat data. By province, visitor numbers were up 11.2% in Gipuzkoa and 2.9% in Bizkaia, whereas in Álava they were down 1.2%.

Furthermore, overnight stays registered in hotel establishments of the Basque Country in October 2019 reached 575,756, which was an increase of 1.9% on those registered in October of the previous year, that is, there were 10,908 more overnight stays. There was a positive year-on-year change in overnight stays in Gipuzkoa, with an increase of 7.5%. On the other hand, in Bizkaia and Álava, they decreased by 0.7% and 5.1% respectively.

The number of visitors from within Spain to the Basque Country registered a positive variation of 4.6% in October 2019 compared to October of the previous year. The number of visitors from abroad, rose by 6.7%. In the case of Álava, Spanish visitor numbers saw a 0.4% upturn, whereas foreign visitors numbers were down by 5.0%. In Bizkaia the number of Spanish visitors was up 4.8% and the number of visitors from abroad rose by 0.5%. Finally, in Gipuzkoa there was an increase in Spanish visitor numbers of 6.3% and the number of foreign visitors rose by 16.3%.

This October the average length of stay was 1.94 days, below the average length of stay of 2.01 days in October 2018. In Álava the average length of stay fell from 1.95 days last October to 1.87 days in October 2019, and in Bizkaia it decreased from 1.99 days to 1.92 days. Finally, in Gipuzkoa the average length of stay was also down from 2.06 days in October 2018 to 1.99 days in October 2019.

There was a drop of 0.9 percentage points in the bed occupancy rate for the Basque Country overall, where it went from 60.6% in October 2018 to 59.8% in October this year. Álava experienced a drop of 2.2 percentage points, down from 55.3% to 53.1%. Bizkaia witnessed a fall of 3.9 percentage points, dropping from an occupancy rate of 62.6% in October 2018 to a rate of 58.7% this October. In Gipuzkoa the occupancy rate increased by 3.2 percentage points, rising from 60.2% in October of the previous year to 63.4% this October.

The occupancy rate per room registered a 0.9 percentage point drop for the Basque Country overall, reaching 73.2%. In Álava it was up 1.4 percentage points, standing at 69.3%, in Bizkaia it was down 5.0 percentage points, reaching 72.6%, and in Gipuzkoa there was a rise of 3.2 percentage points, registering 75.5% occupancy per room.

The highest hotel bed occupancy rate this October was in Donostia-San Sebastián (74.1%), followed by Bilbao (65.8%) and Gipuzkoa Costa (58.8%).

Taking into account the day of the week, at weekends there was a higher occupancy in the Basque Country as a whole in October 2019, with 72.0% of places occupied, whilst the registered occupancy stood at 55.4% 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 94.10 euros in October 2019, 4.2% up on the year before. The average rate stood at 72.55 euros in Álava, where it fell by 1.1%, in Bizkaia with an average rate of 90.65 euros, it rose by 3.3%, and in Gipuzkoa; with an average daily rate (ADR) of 105.17 euros; it was up 5.9%.

The revenue per available room (RevPAR) in the Basque Country overall, which is dependent on the occupancy rate of hotel establishments, stood at 68.92 euros in October 2019, a 3.0% increase on October 2018. The RevPAR stood at 50.25 euros in Álava, 65.79 euros in Bizkaia, and 79.36 euros in Gipuzkoa.

The occupancy rate per room during the "El Pilar" holiday weekend was 79.1% in the hotel establishments of the Basque Country

During the “El Pilar” holiday weekend, there were 24,831 visitors to hotel establishments in the Basque Country. In Bizkaia there were 11,174 visitors; in Gipuzkoa there were 10,233; and in Álava there were 3,424.

For their part, the number of overnight stays stood at 45,863 for the whole of the Basque Country. In Bizkaia 20,948 overnight stays were registered, in Gipuzkoa there were 18,761, and in Álava there were 6,154.

The bed occupancy rate achieved in the Basque Country overall stood at 72.8%.

In rural accommodation, visitor numbers increased by 3.8% and overnight stays fell by 7.1% in October 2019

This October there were 14,976 visitors to rural tourism establishments in the Basque Country, 3.8% more than in the same month of the previous year. By province, in Álava the number of visitors increased by 19.0%, in Bizkaia it was up 3.9%, and Gipuzkoa registered a decrease of 2.4%. The 2,877 visitors originating from abroad signified a rise of 8.1% with regards to those received a year ago and represented 19.2% of the total number of visitors. For its part, the number of visitors from within Spain rose by 2.8%.

Rural tourism establishments and country cottages in the Basque Country recorded a total of 30,878 overnight stays in October 2019, which was a drop of 7.1% compared to the same month of the previous year. At a provincial level, in Álava they fell by 4.8%, in Bizkaia they were up by 2.7%, whilst in Gipuzkoa they were down 13.6%.

The bed occupancy rate in the Basque Country stood at 22.9% with a fall of 2.3 percentage points from the figures obtained in October 2018. Álava also recorded a decrease of 2.6 percentage points, with a bed occupancy rate of 17.3%. In Bizkaia the occupancy rate was 25.8%, which meant an increase of 1.4 percentage points in relation to October 2018, and Gipuzkoa saw a fall of 4.2 percentage points to an occupancy rate this October of 23.8%.

Lastly, the average length of stay per visitor has gone from 2.30 days in October 2018 to 2.06 days in this past month.

Para más información:

Eustat - Euskal Estatistika Erakundea / Instituto Vasco de Estadística C/ Donostia-San Sebastián, 1 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz Servicio de Prensa: servicioprensa@eustat.eus Tlf: 945 01 75 62

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