In terms of the best performing hotel markets in Spain, thanks to the traditionally peak season during Q1 2023, the Canary Islands headed up the ranking with 82% occupancy and €119 RevPAR (vs 79% occupancy and €95 RevPAR in 2019). In terms of cities, Barcelona showed the greatest improvement in comparison with the previous year, with 43% growth in occupancy (67% vs. 47%) and 27% increase of ADR (€143 vs. €113). This resulted in impressive 81% RevPAR growth (€96 vs. €53).
Produced jointly by STR y Cushman & Wakefield, the Hotel Sector Barometer shows a full recovery of hotel performance in Spain, following the restrictions imposed during the pandemic. This recovery is embodied by a healthy occupancy during the first quarter at 65%, some 26.4% more than last year and only two percentage points below the figure achieved in 2019.
Turning to the ADR (average daily rate), the Spanish hotels recorded some 13% growth during Q1 2023 (compared to same period last year), reaching €120. This combined with a strong occupancy growth resulted in a robust 43% RevPAR increase, reaching €78 during Q1 2023 (versus €54 for the same period last year). The ADR for Spain as a whole stood at €103 in 2019, along with a RevPAR of €69, meaning that growth in 2023 amounts to some +16% and +13% respectively.
Corresponding to their peak season, the Canary Islands confirmed their position during the first quarter with occupancy growing to 82% (66% last year and 79% in 2019). Malaga was the runner-up with occupancy of 74.3%, 12 percentage points over the figure for the previous year and half a point more than in 2019 and demonstrating that the capital of the Costa del Sol is attracting tourism throughout the year in response to its commitment to reduce seasonality. Amongst other cities, Barcelona has shown significant improvement by achieving occupancy of 67% during the first three months of the year in comparison with 47% in 2022 (growth of 43%).
With among the lowest occupancies were the destinations most impacted by seasonality, such as Marbella (50%) and the Balearic Islands (49%).
According to César Escribano, Regional Manager Southern Europe at STR, “the recovery in activity has sped up during this quarter, with outstanding figures for Madrid and Barcelona in anticipation of how the year will evolve, the pre-summer indicators remaining positive”.
For his part, Bruno Hallé, Partner and Co-head of Cushman & Wakefield Hospitality Spain, considers that “we have witnessed a V-shaped recovery since the end of the pandemic, with price increases responding to the strength of demand and inflationary pressures. The real challenge now is to ensure that operating profits do not suffer as a result of cost increases”.
Room rates have continued to trend upwords since the recovery in activity, benefiting from the strong demand but also under driven by inflation. Consumers are accepting this increase, enabling hotels to rise ADR up to €120 during the first quarter of 2023. At €152, Marbella tops the ranking of average room rates despite low occupancy. It is followed by the Canary Islands at €145 and Barcelona at €143 (7.5% more than in 2019), both benefiting from international tourism. For its part, Madrid recorded an ADR of €129. This excellent figure is some 20% up on the €107 for the same quarter in 2019, prior to the pandemic.
The Spanish destinations exceeding an ADR of €100 notably include Malaga (€110) and Seville (€105), with Valencia almost crossing this threshold (€99). The lowest ADR was found in Zaragoza (€66).
According to Albert Grau, Partner and Co-head of Cushman & Wakefield Hospitality Spain “the hotel industry has demonstrated that improving product quality represents a safe bet in that it strengthens demand, grows loyalty and enables price increases in line with market conditions”.
The ADR reached €120 in the first quarter, some 15% above the figure for 2019 and 13% more than last year
The rise in occupancy and price increases have enabled hoteliers to grow RevPAR (revenue per available room). Thanks to the coincidence with its peak season, the Canary Islands topped the RevPAR rankings during the first quarter, achieving a figure of €119. This is some 28% above that achieved last year and even 25% above 2019’s figures (€95).
Although the first quarter is traditionally low season for the majority of destinations in Spain, RevPAR grew very significantly in cities such as Barcelona (+81%), Valencia (+54%) and Madrid (+49%). Once again, we find the lowest figures for RevPAR in Zaragoza (€45) and the Balearic Islands (€45), in the latter case due to low occupancy as a result of the degree of seasonality.
The RevPAR for the first quarter stands at €78, representing growth of some 43% in comparison with the beginning of 2022
The Hotel Sector Barometer brings together data from 1,200 hotels and around 180,000 rooms on the Iberian Peninsula. The study is the product of an alliance between STR, a worldwide provider of benchmarking, analytics and market knowledge specialising in the hotel sector, and Cushman & Wakefield Spain, the world leader in real estate services.
