Hotels in the Middle East reported mixed performance results during August, while hotels in Africa posted growth across the three key performance indicators, according to data from analytics and marketplace insights provider STR.

Hotel room occupancy in the Middle East dropped 3.9 per cent to 62.1 per cent during the month, while average daily rate (ADR) rose 7.4 per cent to $151.04. Revenue per available room (RevPAR) increased 3.2 per cent to $93.84.

Occupancy in African hotels was higher by 2.9 per cent to 61.2 per cent, while ADR rose +11.7 per cent to $99.78. Revenue per available room (RevPAR) increased 15.0 per cent to $61.09.

Egypt

Egyptian hotels reported a rise of 12.5 per cent in occupancy rates during the month. ADR went up 73.3 per cent to EGP1,233.18 ($69.7). Revenue per available room jumped 95.0 per cent to EGP823.70

Egypt’s ADR has remained above EGP1,000 each month since November 2016, and rate growth has been primarily driven by Cairo, which posted an 83.8 per cent August increase to EGP1,671.39. However, figures are quite different in US dollar terms, with a 12.9 per cent decline for the country and 7.6 per cent decrease in Cairo. Meanwhile, Egypt’s occupancy levels benefitted from a 12.9 per cent increase in demand, while supply grew only 0.4 per cent compared with August 2016. Egypt’s hotels continue to recover from security concerns in the country, and demand has grown by double-digits for all but one month in 2017.

Morocco  

Morocco hotels posted a drop of 6.4 per cent in occupancy, whereas ADR surged 9.6 per cent t0 MD1,183.50 ($126). RevPAR was up 2.5 per cent to MAD778.21.

August marked Morocco’s fifth consecutive month of ADR growth. At the market level, Marrakech recorded a 17.5 per cent increase in RevPAR, driven solely by rate growth, while Casablanca was the only market that managed to increase both occupancy and ADR, resulting in 5.6 per cent growth in RevPAR. STR analysts note that supply growth (+3.5 per cent year to date) is affecting Morocco’s occupancy levels. Additionally, the country has 28 hotel projects in the pipeline, of which, six are scheduled to open before the end of the year.

United Arab Emirates

Occupancy in UAE hotels was down by 5.9 per cent to 68.4 per cent. ADR declined 8.3 per cent to Dh422.77 ($115). RevPAR saw a drop of 13.7 per cent to Dh289.27.

STR analysts noted that hotel demand remains solid in the United Arab Emirates (+4.8 per cent year to date), but significant supply growth (5.1 per cent YTD) continues to pressure occupancy levels and pricing power. At the market level, both Dubai (-14.0 per cent) and Abu Dhabi (-11.9 per cent) reported RevPAR declines, due primarily to lower rates. – TradeArabia News Service