Occupancy

The average price of a hotel room in Athens topped €200 in June, 17.7% up from June 2023 and 33% higher than June 2022.

Strong demand is driving prices up as Athens is no longer a mere stopover for visitors headed for the islands. And competition from short-term stays in apartments appears to have had no effect.

The growth in room prices in Athens and the region of Attica is continuing, while the occupancy rates of hotels of all categories are also expanding, according to January-May 2024 data.

Signs over the last few months that Athens hotels may be reaching saturation point were confirmed on Thursday as first-quarter data indicated an 6.8 percent decline in occupancy and revenues per available room on an annual basis. The average room rate remained the same as a year earlier.

Luxury travelers who have left their holiday bookings until the last minute this month may find the prices steep even by their standards.

Nearly half of the hotel rooms in Turkey are empty with an 11 percent fall in 2017, a recent report by STR Global, a data company, has stated. 

A 1.9 percent increase in the last month of 2016, which was solely revenue from New Year's Day bookings in the Mediterranean resort city of Antalya, did not help annual figures recover, which stood at 50.8 percent. 

By Stathis Kousounis

Hotel occupancy rates at the country’s main winter resorts during this holiday period are between 80 and 100 percent, as it seems lower fuel prices have offset concerns about the country’s political woes.

Hotels on Mt Pilio (pictured) are reporting 95 percent occupancy, followed by Kalavryta and Arachova at 90 percent.