Athens-Attica Hoteliers See Positive Signs for Year Ahead
January occupancy levels at hotels in wider Athens came to 52.8 percent marking a 3.1 percent rise over the same month a year ago giving hoteliers reason to be optimistic.
More specifically, the Athens – Attica & Argosaronic Hotel Association is pleased with the results for January, a traditionally slow month of the year and not indicative of what’s to come.
“We hope everything will develop smoothly and that the tourist demand for Athens until the months of March and April will be maintained at good levels,” the association said in an announcement on Thursday.
Overall in the first month of the year, average room rate (ARR) and revenue per available room (RevPAR) in Athens came to 90.34 euros compared to 90.01 euros in 2023, marking a 0.4 percent rise with RevPAR at 47.69 euros compared to 46.08 euros in January 2023, a 3.5 percent increase.
According to the association, Athens appears to be gaining ground as an off-season destination offering competitive rates compared to other rival cities.
Indicatively, January rates in rival cities were still higher than in Athens: 117.8 euros in Istanbul (RevPAR 66.38 euros), 299.57 euros in Paris (RevPAR 120.12 euros), 138.22 euros in Madrid (RevPAR 88.18 euros), 127.56 in Barcelona (RevPAR 75.64 euros), and 165.99 in Rome (RevPAR 83.16 euros).
“Τhe new tourism year is expected to be good for Athens hotels, which still have competitive prices compared to other destination cities,” the association said.
At the same time, hoteliers add that performance could improve further if governmental actions are taken to improve cleanliness and safety, rein in inflation, address short-term rental activity, and improve infrastructure including the creation of an Athens conference center for major MICE events.
According to the association’s recent survey on the performance of hotels in Athens and Attica, the satisfaction of guests has increased over the past 10 years from a low score of 7.7 in 2017 to 8.4 both in 2022 and 2023. Athens’ strong points include its culture, behavior of locals and entertainment and leisure offerings. The Greek capital’s hotels, restaurants, bars and shopping outlets are also highly rated.