Dubai : Hotel room occupancy in Dubai rose 5.5 per cent to 72.2 per cent from January to July this year, international consultancy firm Deloitte reported in its recent survey on the hospitality industry in the Middle East.
The analysis, based on selected data by sector specialist STR Global, said that continued marketing and promotion efforts undertaken by the city's hotels have contributed to the occupancy growth.
However, revenue per available room (RevPar), an important benchmark in the sector, was estimated at $157.15 (Dh577.99) during the period, representing a slight decline of 3.2 per cent from the corresponding period in 2009, according to Rob O'Hanlon, Tourism, Hospitality and Leisure Partner at Deloitte in the Middle East.
Added capacity woes
For Abu Dhabi, data showed that occupancy was down 25.9 per cent to 56.3 per cent between January and July. The decline is attributed to the addition of new capacity.
RevPar during the period was $114.96 compared to $228.55 in the same period in 2009. In an outlook, the report stated that Abu Dhabi's hotels "will bene-fit from large-scale events to boost occupancy in the months to come."
Overall, Deloitte said that the Middle East — together with Asia Pacific — have the top performing hotels in terms of occupancy, average room rate and RevPar data.
"The industry is largely proving its resiliency and recovery is gathering momentum. We expect the corporate travel sector to be the sector that has the strongest bounce back," said Marvin Rust, hospitality managing partner at Deloitte.
The Middle East had the most entries in the average room rate and RevPar rankings as the region continues to achieve the strongest average room rates globally.
Manama and Riyadh featured among the top five average room rate and RevPar rankings while Doha achieved the fifth strongest average room rates globally.
Meanwhile, Dubai was the fifth biggest RevPar earner despite continued pressure on average room rates as the emirate matures as a tourist destination and new supply enters the market.
RevPar in the Middle East still remains dominant with $120.43 in the first half of the year, compared to $79.06 in Europe, $81.56 in the Asia Pacific region, and $58.20 in the Americas — factoring in overall decreases in the Middle East of 1.8 per cent in terms of occupancy and 8.8 per cent in RevPar during the period.
