Spanish hotels are recovering from the Covid crash, with business returning to pre-pandemic levels, according to executives at the recent FITUR travel trade show in Madrid.
Hotel executives said the industry was well out of the catastrophic crash of the Covid years.
The country’s hotel sector is working to address issues that may impact volume in the future, while companies have ambitious plans for 2024, expanding in existing markets and opening new territories.
High-net-worth buyers are flocking to the country, and a renewed interest in the city has spawned a wave of five-star luxury accommodations in the pipeline.
The family behind the fashion brand Zara has invested billions in real estate.
According to a recent report, since 2019, 28 international groups have opened 122 new hotels with 22,640 rooms in Spain.
2022 was Spain’s third highest investment year in its history, with Meliá Hotels and Iberostar adding to their portfolios.
They are shrugging off the threat to summer occupancy because of the war in Ukraine.
Reservations for this July and September are already double those of 2021, and the industry is on course to bounce back over the next three months following a harrowing two years.
Tourism is one of Spain’s most important economic sectors, accounting for more than 12 per cent of the country’s GDP and employing 2.6 million people.
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Companies like Castilla Termal are focusing exclusively on convents and other complexes to transform them into upscale four and five-star spa properties.
Founded in Mallorca in 1953, Meliá Hotels now has 100 hotels in 20 countries, specializing primarily in all-inclusive holiday resort properties, including new properties in Asia such as the Gran Meliá Zhengzhou in China, and the Gran Meliá Nha Trang in Vietnam.
One hospitality consultant notes that investor interest is being tempered by high interest rates, which may impact the hotel sector’s growth in the coming years.
Despite this, the hotel sector will likely enjoy a busy autumn season, with UMusic properties being planned for Biloxi, Mississippi; Atlanta, Georgia and Orlando, Florida in the United States, along with others in Europe and Latin America.
It has ambitious plans.
The company wants to have 1 million rooms in 100 countries by 2050, indicating a significant expansion of its operations in the coming decades.
Beyond its primary markets, the company sees opportunities in the Balkans where it already has a presence in Montenegro, Slovenia and Bulgaria, highlighting the potential for growth in emerging destinations.
A great 2022 marked by holidaymakers getting back on flights has resulted in higher room rates while the MICE and business travel sectors are also showing a return to normal, indicating a broad-based recovery in the industry.
The company is open to managing hotels under its own brand, a white brand or even the brand of another chain, as well as different types of management contracts, offering flexibility in its operations.
Both Meliá Hotels and Iberostar are adding to their portfolios, demonstrating the confidence of major industry players in the Spanish market.
