Abu Dhabi guest arrivals touch 22% for October
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Abu Dhabi has had a positive October yet in terms of hotel guests and guest nights, according to figures released by Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi).
Arrivals at the emirate’s 136 hotels and hotel apartments soared 22% on the same month last year to 223,015 guests with guest nights rising 16% to 675,542. Total hotel revenues increased 9% month-on-month to AED450,075,911 (US$122.5mn) with food & beverage revenue rising 11% to AED168,708,675 (US$45.9mn) and room revenue climbing 7% to AED234,668,478 (US$63.5mn).
“October benefitted from action-packed events,” explained HE Mubarak Al Muhairi, director general, TCA Abu Dhabi. “The authority, working closely with its stakeholders, is focusing on initiatives to build occupancy, which slipped seven percent in November compared to October 2011 to 71% and average-length of guest stay, fell by 5% month-on-month to 3.03 nights.”
He further added: “Building length of stay will be part of the offset solution and is achievable given there is now so much more to see and do in the emirate with the YasWaterworld theme park, due to open shortly.”
October’s performance has lifted Abu Dhabi’s year-to-date hotel guest arrivals by 16% to 1964,345 with guest nights for the period rising 11% to 5,635,766. Year-to-date revenues have moved up 4% to AED3.61bn (US$982.8mn) though occupancy fell 7% to 64% and the average-length-of-stay dropped 4% to 2.87 nights.
Domestic tourism accounted for 15% of hotel guest arrivals during October with the GCC delivering the strongest increase of 58% largely driven by a 79% increase in guests from Saudi Arabia, a 61% uplift from Qatar, a 43% rise from Oman and a 34% surge from Kuwait.
In the first 10 months of this year domestic tourism accounted for an 11% uplift to 747,210 hotel guests from within the Emirates. The UK remained Abu Dhabi’s largest international hotel guest source market with arrivals inching up 2% to 113,508, translating into 487,307 guest nights. India turned in a 32% increase to 112,179 guests accounting for 437,114 guest nights and to place the republic second in Abu Dhabi’s hotel guest rankings. Germany came in third in the destination’s overseas hotel guest source markets – arrivals from the Federal Republic shot up 46% to 76,570 and 346,328 guest nights.
Double-digit hotel guest growth has also been recorded in the first 10 months from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, The Philippines, Jordan, Syria, Pakistan, Italy, Oman, Qatar, China, Kuwait, Russia, Palestine, The Netherlands and Ireland.