Hotel occupancy recovering after Covid-19 hit

LOCAL hotel occupancy levels are beginning to show signs of recovery, leading domestic hotel operators say, after a drastic fall in 2020 resulting from the negative impact of Covid-19 induced travel restrictions.

Rainbow Tourism Group ( RTG) said its occupancy levels in the first six months of 2021 registered 4 percent growth compared to 2020 figures in its hotels, while African Sun’s occupancy grew by 2 percent to close the first half period at 24 percent, from 22 percent realised in the same period last year.

However, the 24 percent growth in occupancy recorded by African Sun was lower than the 49 percent the group recorded in 2019, before the outbreak of the pandemic and associated effect of restrictions on travelling.

RTG said performance was largely boosted by domestic tourism given the restrictions on international travel, but said its conferences business was severely affected by lockdown measures which resulted in limited activities between January and mid–March this year.

The group saw modest revenue modestly grow to $706 million in the period under review, a 53 percent rise from $462 million in the prior comparable period.

RTG’s revenue per available room (RevPar) grew by 31 percent in the first half to $2 014 while Average Daily Rate ( ADR) grew by 24 percent to $8 395.

“Business volumes improved significantly from mid-March to June 2021 buoyed by accommodation, outside catering as well as Gateway Stream revenue channels,” said RTG chairman Arthur Manase in a statement of the financials.

At $1,15 billion, African Sun’s revenue was significantly better than the first six months of 2020, which managed a 20 percent growth to $954 million, largely attributable to marginal growth in occupancy and firm average daily rate.

African Sun’s total revenue per available room (RevPar) grew to $3 743 from $3 303 in the 2021 half year while revenue per available room increased to $1932 from $1 651 in the same period in 2020.

According to African Sun the fall in Covid-19 cases across the globe lately has led to a partial return to normalcy in key source markets like the United Kingdom and United States, signalling new dawn in the fight against the deadly pandemic.

“We are cautiously optimistic that the accelerated vaccination programmes around the world and the likely easing of restrictions for vaccinated travellers will contribute to the gradual normalisation of travel. In the short term, domestic travel will continue to drive our economy,” said African Sun in a statement accompanying the group's half- year financial results.

The unprecedented impact of the Covid19 pandemic has negatively affected international tourist arrivals which according to the latest United Nations WORLD Tourism Organisation ( UNWTO) world tourism barometer reduced by 85 percent between January and May 2021 compared to the same period pre-pandemic year (2019).