Chain Hotels Come Up Winners in Greece, Sector Report Finds

Hotels belonging to large accommodation chains recorded 67 percent higher revenue per room in 2014 against independent hotel units in Greece, while occupancy and room rates were significantly higher, an Institute for Tourism Research and Forecasts (ITEP) report released Monday found.

Indicatively, hotel occupancy at chain hotels came to 64.8 percent versus 55.7 percent of all sampled hotels. Occupancy at chain hotels in August came to 91.7 percent compared to 86.9 percent for the total of hotels sampled.

At the same time, the average price of chain hotel rooms came to 99.05 euros in May and 154.72 euros in August, against 72.40 euros and 116.00 euros respectively for the total number of hotels surveyed.

The report also found that in the last 15 years (2000-2014), the number of hotels increased by 23.5 percent, and by 30.4 percent in terms of rooms. Meanwhile, the number of 1-star hotels dropped by 11 percent, the number of 2-star units grew by 5 percent and the number of 5-star family-owned hotels increased by 7 percent, demonstrating a trend to revamp small accommodation units into boutique hotels.

A total of 45.4 percent of hotels remained open all year round in 2014, compared to 44 percent in 2009, against 54.6 percent operating seasonally, versus 56 percent in 2009.

The country’s hotel capacity is concentrated in the Southern Aegean Region by 24.7 percent and on Crete by 21.8 percent, with the Ionian Islands not far behind at 11.7 percent and Central Macedonia at 11 percent.