Between extreme heatwaves and fires, the European hotel industry has seen a new dynamic this summer. While the countries of the south of Europe (Italy, Greece, Portugal, etc.) have seen the strongest growth in terms of activity compared with the pre-covid period (RevPAR growth of over 30% compared with July 2019), it is the countries in the north-east of the continent that are driving the recovery compared with last year: Hungary, the Czech Republic, Switzerland and Austria are driving this growth, including in terms of hotel occupancy. Could global warming and overtourism be reshuffling the tourism cards this summer?
On a more local level, all the countries are still below pre-COVID levels, with the exception of Greece, where occupancy is up 2 points compared with July 2019. Poland (-0.9 points vs 2019) and Italy (-1.2 points vs 2019) also reported good results in terms of occupancy.
Nevertheless, compared with the previous season, the results are very encouraging: with the exception of Belgium, Greece, France and Portugal, all of Europe is reporting better levels of occupation rates. The Eastern European countries are gradually catching up, with increases in occupancy of over 11 points in one year. This is particularly true of Hungary and the Czech Republic, which are now posting good hotel performances (>+25% RevPAR vs. 2022). Poland is a little behind, with a relatively stable occupancy rate compared with last year, but the recovery in tourism had already begun.
Switzerland (+6 pts), Austria (+6.2 pts) and Luxembourg (+5.5 pts) are also enjoying a strong upturn in visitor numbers.
ADRs across the continent have rocketed compared to July 2019, with many countries recording growth rates of over 30%, including Belgium (30.9%), Italy (41.2%), Portugal (38.5%), France (32.6%), Hungary (65.6%) and Greece (35.6%).
And if we look at the results in comparison with last summer, some countries are faring better than others: Belgium, Italy, Portugal, Latvia, Hungary and Switzerland are reporting growth of over 10%, while the United Kingdom (0.4%), Germany (5.1%) and Spain (5.6%) are posting lower levels of growth.
Of course, Greece, with RevPAR up almost 40% on 2019, is one of the driving forces behind the European summer season. The same is true of Italy, where business has risen by +39.2% compared to the pre-COVID period, and is also up 18% on last year. But the extreme fires, particularly in Rhodes and Sicily, which have caused thousands of...
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