Dubai: Average room rates (ARR) of four- and five-star hotels in Dubai continued to fall in May amid a lower euro and strengthening dollar, according to a survey from research firm HotStats.
ARR was down 10.8 per cent to $271.64 year-on-year in May, while occupancy edged up 1.9 per cent to 83.8 per cent, but that was not enough to raise revenue per available room (RevPAR — the standard industry measure). It dropped 8.7 per cent to $227.65.
Food and beverage demand was softer in May, which helped push down total revenue per available room (TrevPAR) and gross operating profit per available room (GOPPAR) by 11.7 per cent and 14.5 per cent respectively.
Elsewhere in the region, Jeddah hotels saw ARR fall 10.6 per cent to $258.19, occupancy by 6 per cent to 75 per cent, causing RevPAR to plummet 17 per cent to $193.74 year-on-year in May.
In Doha, ARR decreased by 2.8 per cent to $210.27, occupancy by 1.3 per cent to 74.9 per cent and RevPAR by 4.4 per cent to $157.5.
Similarly, Manama hotels experienced decreases across all key performance indicators. ARR was down 6.6 per cent to $179.07, while occupancy edged down 3.7 per cent to 49.6 per cent, lowering RevPAR by 13 per cent to $88.79.
However, Kuwait hotels recorded increases across all key performance indicators. Occupancy was up 3.6 per cent to 55.9 per cent, which allowed hoteliers to yield a 3.4 per cent rise in ARR to $266, resulting in a 10.5 per cent growth in RevPAR to $148.72.
Lower food and beverage demand limited the overall revenue growth and TRevPAR grew by 6 per cent to $334.06 year-on-year in May. Profits were up 8.7 per cent, with a GOPPAR of $161.82, driven by marginally lower operating and payroll expenses.
