By Mohammad Shoeb
The Peninsula
DOHA: The upcoming hotels and hotel apartments, which are estimated to add over 26,600 keys over the next five years, are expected to put a downward pressure on the occupancy rates, revenue and profitability of the existing players in Qatar’s hospitality market.
Some 56 hotels and 13 hotel apartment buildings, with 26,653 rooms, are under construction and due to be ready within the next five years. The completion of these establishments is likely to put pressure on overall occupancy levels, said a report by DTZ Qatar, a leading real estate service provider, citing Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) data.
The sector over the past four years has been facing reducing room revenues. Statistics released by the Ministry of Development Planning and Statistics for this April confirmed that the ‘Average Daily Rates’ experienced a year-on-year fell by 6.5 percent and ‘Revenue Per Available Rooms’ fell by 17.8 percent.
According to official data, supply of hotel accommodation in Qatar surpassed 20,700 by the start of 2016. The most recent addition to the hotel market — the Westin Hotel in Bin Mahmoud — opened this April with 365 guest rooms and suites.
There are 123 hotels and hotel apartments in Doha. Of the current supply, about 88 percent are categorised four-star or five-star.
The trend is likely to continue in the short term as 85 percent of upcoming establishments in the development pipeline fall within these high-end categories, although 30 percent of the development pipeline have yet to be classified.
The number of arrivals recorded by QTA showed a 3.7 percent year-on-year increase last year.
While efforts are being made to expand Qatar’s brand as a tourist destination internationally, the market remains dominated by Saudi Arabia which contributes 42 percent of the numbers arriving in the country, said the report.
Despite growing tourist numbers, overall hotel occupancy rates in the hospitality sector declined by 2 percent to 71 percent in 2015, largely due to the increase in the supply.
The figures released by the Ministry of Development Planning and Statistics this April showed occupancy rates for the month fell by 8 percent to 64 percent from the corresponding month in 2015. To support the expanding hospitality sector, Qatar National Tourism Sector Strategy Plan 2030 has set out a programme to invest $45bn in tourism projects over the next 15 years to attract a larger amount of tourists from outside GCC, with an ambitious target to increase overall annual arrivals to 7 million by 2030.
By Mohammad Shoeb
The Peninsula
DOHA: The upcoming hotels and hotel apartments, which are estimated to add over 26,600 keys over the next five years, are expected to put a downward pressure on the occupancy rates, revenue and profitability of the existing players in Qatar’s hospitality market.
Some 56 hotels and 13 hotel apartment buildings, with 26,653 rooms, are under construction and due to be ready within the next five years. The completion of these establishments is likely to put pressure on overall occupancy levels, said a report by DTZ Qatar, a leading real estate service provider, citing Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) data.
The sector over the past four years has been facing reducing room revenues. Statistics released by the Ministry of Development Planning and Statistics for this April confirmed that the ‘Average Daily Rates’ experienced a year-on-year fell by 6.5 percent and ‘Revenue Per Available Rooms’ fell by 17.8 percent.
According to official data, supply of hotel accommodation in Qatar surpassed 20,700 by the start of 2016. The most recent addition to the hotel market — the Westin Hotel in Bin Mahmoud — opened this April with 365 guest rooms and suites.
There are 123 hotels and hotel apartments in Doha. Of the current supply, about 88 percent are categorised four-star or five-star.
The trend is likely to continue in the short term as 85 percent of upcoming establishments in the development pipeline fall within these high-end categories, although 30 percent of the development pipeline have yet to be classified.
The number of arrivals recorded by QTA showed a 3.7 percent year-on-year increase last year.
While efforts are being made to expand Qatar’s brand as a tourist destination internationally, the market remains dominated by Saudi Arabia which contributes 42 percent of the numbers arriving in the country, said the report.
Despite growing tourist numbers, overall hotel occupancy rates in the hospitality sector declined by 2 percent to 71 percent in 2015, largely due to the increase in the supply.
The figures released by the Ministry of Development Planning and Statistics this April showed occupancy rates for the month fell by 8 percent to 64 percent from the corresponding month in 2015. To support the expanding hospitality sector, Qatar National Tourism Sector Strategy Plan 2030 has set out a programme to invest $45bn in tourism projects over the next 15 years to attract a larger amount of tourists from outside GCC, with an ambitious target to increase overall annual arrivals to 7 million by 2030.
