Middle East hotels post biggest rates rise of year

Andy Sambidge, November 26th, 2012

Hotels in the Middle East posted double digit increases in average daily rates for the first time this year in October, according to latest industry data.

STR Global said ADR across the region's hotels rose by more than 13 percent last month to reach $246 after benefiting from the Eid holiday.

In Saudi Arabia, occupancy rates in October stood at 66 percent, up 10.5 percent while ADR rose 25.5 percent and RevPAR increased by 38.8 percent.

In the UAE, hotels reported occupancy at 77.5 percent last month, up two percent, ADR rose 11 percent while RevPAR grew by 13.3 percent.

The Middle East/Africa region reported positive hotel performance results in October, added STR Global.

The region’s occupancy increased 4.6 percent to 65.5 percent during the month, its average daily rate rose 9.4 percent to $183.97 and its revenue per available room grew 14.4 percent to $120.56.

“ADR across the Middle East saw a double-digit uplift in October for the first time this year," said Elizabeth Randall Winkle, managing director of STR Global.

“Across Saudi Arabia, RevPAR grew 38.8 percent in US dollar terms against October 2011. The biggest RevPAR increases were reported in Makkah (88.2 percent) and Madinah (36.9 percent) followed by Al Khobar (25.1 percent) and Jeddah (23.4 percent).

"RevPAR in Riyadh, the country’s business hub, declined 38.4 percent in the same month," she added.

Cairo, Egypt, rose 11.1 percent in occupancy to 52 percent, reporting the largest increase in that metric in the region.

Jeddah (up 26.9 percent to $243.19), and Dubai (up 13.2 percent to $272.70) ended the month with the largest ADR increases, STR Global said.

Three Middle East markets achieved double-digit RevPAR growth - Jeddah (+23.4 percent to $189.54); Dubai (+20.4 percent to $224.51); Cairo (+17.3 percent to $59.10).

Beirut reported the largest decrease in all three key performance metrics. The market’s occupancy fell 37.7 percent to 38.5 percent, its ADR was down 15.9 percent to $159.34, and its RevPAR decreased 47.6 percent to $61.36.