Roussounides: Cyprus still has a way to go before becoming a year-round tourism destination

Quite high occupancy rates, reaching or even exceeding 90% in some cases, were recorded by many hotels in Cyprus this August, leaving hoteliers satisfied, since despite the challenges, the tourism sector has remained resilient.

At the same time, the indications for the coming months are also positive, despite the fact that, for the time being, it is not yet possible to make accurate predictions about the level of hotel occupancy in September and October.

Of course, according to data collected by the Cyprus Hotels Association, the number of overnight stays is reduced compared to last year, mainly due to the reduction in the duration of the holidays for tourists arriving in Cyprus, as well as due to guests turning to to both self-service Airbnb-style accommodation and hotels the occupied areas.

At the same time, the goal of making Cyprus a year-round destination, it seems, is unlikely be achieved in the immediate future, with the Association emphasising the need for certain policies to be changed, in order for hotels to choose to remain open rather than close some months of the year.

Occupancies in August

In his statements to InBusinessNews, and when asked how this season is progressing, the Association’s Director General, Philokypros Roussounides, said that "it seems that we are moving at quite good levels, which are at the same levels as last year, if not a little higher, something that also shows the resilience of the industry, since in the midst of many problems and challenges - the war in the region, the economic recession in Great Britain --our main market, the Olympic Games, the UEFA European Football Championship -, the number of arrivals, at least , remained unaffected."

"This we must emphasise is a very positive element and perhaps an element that demonstrates the overwhelming need to focus on the industry, to invest, to support it, so as to build solid foundations for the future, because many other challenges are coming such as climate change, the green transition, for which we must be ready to face, both through policies and through comparative actions from the public, but also the private sector," he added.

Asked to say where the hotel occupancy rates stand, Roussounides said that "in August they fluctuated around 80% and in some cases exceeded 90%."

Occupancies were quite high, even though overnight stays were down compared to last year due to the losses we have to Airbnb-type accommodations, but also the reduction in the length of vacations of tourists arriving on our island due to the economic recession."

In addition to this, he continued, "unfortunately, the phenomenon of the loss of tourists to the occupied areas contributed to the reduced overnight stays."

The indications for the coming months

Asked about the indications for the coming months, the Association’s Director General told InBusinessNews that "subject to geopolitical developments, it seems that both September and October will move at fairly good levels, at the same levels as last year.”

In response to a related question, he said that "at this moment, it is not possible to estimate the occupancy rates in the hotels. What we can say is that bookings so far are close to last year's levels."

How Cyprus can become an all-season destination

Asked, furthermore, to say whether the goal of making Cyprus a year-round destination is feasible, Roussounides said: "No, for now. In order to become a year-round destination, in addition to November, we must have a substantial tourist flow in December and January and February, but also in March," he explained.

"To achieve this goal, we need private and public cooperation, the political will to change some policies and give flexibility to businesses so that it's easier to stay open than to close," he pointed out, noting that "this is something which we are looking at with the Ministry of Labour, the President of the Republic has got involved and gave relevant instructions to the Minister, so that some things can be changed in this direction".

Asked when the majority of hotels are expected to close this season, the Cyprus Hotels Association Director General said "it seems that we will go on until November."

"Consequently, if we add November to the tourist offering, it will be something positive. That is, slowly closing the gap between the winter and the summer season and hoping that in the medium-term future we will be able to talk about a year-round destination as well," Roussounides concluded.

(Source: InBusinessNews)