Movenpick will concentrate its African growth on Egypt while hunting for sites in sub-Saharan Africa, Travel Daily has heard.
Stephen Banks, director of sales and marketing for Africa at the hotel group revealed occupancies for its Egypt hotels has more than doubled at the start of this year compared to the lows seen in the last three years.
Hotels in the country were typically only 30% full at their worst, where now Movenpick’s Cairo, Sharm el Skeikh and El Gouna hotels have been 67%, 70% and 55% full respectively.
“2013 was meant to be the year everything improved and even January 2011 had started very well but the revolution knocked it back in March and April. 2012 was better and 2013 was at first but after July it dipped again, so we are looking forward to steady growth and more normal times from October this year,” he explained.
Egypt’s tourism is expected to pick up more this year particularly when the winter 2014/15 season kicks in and confidence has come back.
“The British market is generally very resilient and once the FCO advice was lifted there was an upsurge in bookings and people like to regularly visit Egypt,” he said. “The pick-up will be quite last minute and it has been a struggle but we are here for the long run and cannot complain now as occupancies are improving.”
While protests have largely died down now, demonstrations are expected to spark when elections take place in April and June.
Although tourism in the country has suffered Banks believes the country is in a better political state now and Movenpick’s long-term vision for the country indicates its optimism.
The UK travel trade is also willing to get passengers back, with Banks receiving positivity on a recent roadshow in the UK.
“I had some very positive feedback from the UK trade as the Brits are very loyal to Egypt and are generally very aware of the situation and well informed with what is happening,” he said. “People here are willing to come back to a destination when they know it is safe.”
Nile cruises are yet to have picked up as quickly as clients on those are typically from the US and they are more reluctant than others. However Movenpick is running some vessels when it can and the market is showing “good signs of recovery”.
Movenpick’s concentration in Africa will be mainly around Egypt but also ‘unchartered’ areas such as Nairobi, Nigeria, Tanzania and the Congo.
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