Summer vacations have quietly arrived, and all those who want to go on vacation this summer have to spend more: all the data suggest that travel this summer will be more expensive than ever. Spain's high inflation is shifting to all sectors of the economy and tourism sectors, especially hotel accommodation, and is also beginning to be on the "train" of soaring prices.
As we all know, the tourism industry has been in a very "downturn" during the epidemic, and this year it has finally begun to recover, or rather to return to normal...
According to a survey of hotels released thursday by the Office for National Statistics (INE),
Specifically, the cost of staying at a hotel in May this year was 22.1% higher than in 2021 and 38% higher than in 2019. The data is consistent with the CPI's calculation that the prices of hotels, hostels, apartments and other accommodation services were the most expensive products last month.
According to statistics, 12 of Spain's 17 autonomous regions recorded the highest hotel rates in an all-time series in May.
The region with the most price increases compared to 2019 was the Balearic Islands, where hotel stays were 90% higher in May than two years ago, Andalusia (up 47%), Madrid (43%), Cantabria (43%), Canary Islands (37%) and Catalonia (30%). It was followed by the Basque Country (27%), the Valencian community (25%), La Rioja (24%), Galicia (23%) and Aragon (21%), whose prices increased by more than 20%. Finally, two Castiles (16%), Extremadura (15%), Asturias (14%), Murcia (2%) and Navarre (6%) were the most stable regions.
The price of accommodation also varies depending on the level of service provided. For example, price increases are already fully reflected in the bills of hoteliers, who received an average of €95.30 per room per day in May, an increase of 24.5% over last year and a 14% increase over 2019, when €83.50 per room was generated for them. In terms of urban distribution, the most profitable city is Marbella, with an average turnover of 188 euros per room per day, Barcelona (152 euros), Estepona (148), San Sebastian (145), Seville (138), Sitges (133.2), Madrid (127), Adeje (118), San Bartolome de Tilajana (117 euros) and Malaga (117 euros). The sharp rise in tourism prices has resulted in revenues in the sector being almost at the same level as before the pandemic. Although the number of tourists arriving is still decreasing compared to 2019, this is still the case. According to INE, visitor spending in May was almost the same as it was two years ago, while the number of visitors was about 85% of the normal level before COVID-19. Hotel overnight data also points in the same direction. Last month, the hotels registered a total of 9.87 million passengers, compared to 10.5 in 2019. The reason for the difference is that foreign tourists arrived about 700,000 fewer than in 2019. Communities and provinces that have been restored. This is the case in the Canary Islands, the Basque Country and Cantabria, which have stayed overnight even longer than before the pandemic.