The occupancy rates of Cyprus hotels are expected to be lower than in 2023 in the summer of 2024 according to the data so far, says the President of the Cyprus Hoteliers Association Thanos Michailidis, adding however that these can be overturned.
In his statements to KYPE, Mr. Michaelidis said that "we continue to be concerned about how the summer occupancy will move taking into account all that is happening around Cyprus" while in relation to the economy of the United Kingdom, he says that "it presents some weaknesses". He also added that despite efforts to fill the void left by the UK and Israel from new markets such as Poland, France and Germany "there is concern" about how the new season will play out.
He noted that booking flow for the summer of 2024 appears to be lagging behind that of the summer of 2023.
Mr. Michailidis also referred to April, noting that the occupancies showed a lag compared to April 2023, also due to the fact that the Catholic Easter was in March and with a long time difference from the Orthodox Easter.
Regarding the occupancy rates of the hotels for the three days of Easter, he noted that they fluctuated satisfactorily throughout Cyprus, expressing the hope that soon there will be a solution in Israel, so that this market, which is one of the most important markets for the Cyprus.
Regarding the employment of the workforce, the President of PASYXE Cyprus said that the processing of applications has become shorter, which "is helpful" but he said that the effort must be continued to make the process as fast as possible and the hotel industry to be more productive.
He said, however, that hoteliers face a problem in finding a workforce, not only in terms of numbers but also in terms of suitability. As we enter the summer season and because the labor force problem is global, the options are even fewer, he concluded.