Costa del Sol hotels have high expectations for autumn bookings

The latest data for September shows that Torremolinos topped the table for Malaga province with an occupancy rate of 95.76 per cent, followed by the Axarquia area with 94.57%

Pilar Martínez

Malaga

Tuesday, 1 October 2024, 15:03

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Bookings picked up again at hotels along the Costa del Sol in September, after a slight holiday booking slowdown in August.

Hotels closed last month with an average occupancy rate of 88.74%, which is 2% more than the same period last year, according to data from Aehcos. The Costa del Sol hoteliers association pointed to a strong autumn with the aim of maintaining the upward trend that has marked the first half of the year.

Bookings started to slow in July, while hotels recorded a drop in August, the first decline in tourists for this year. The figures show more people are deciding to come to the Costa del Sol outside of the high season, with high prices and high temperatures blamed.

Hotel figures for September corroborate this change in holiday trends. Aehcos president José Luque said: "We are satisfied with the occupancy results obtained. The months of July and August also left us with encouraging figures, to which we have added those of September, which we value as very positive".

The strong figures come despite a drop in Spanish visitors to the Costa, which according to the association, is due to families' financial situations. Of all the visitors to arrive in Malaga province last month, 75% were international tourists and 25% were Spanish.

Luque also pointed out that "in spite of some drawbacks, such as the limitations in water consumption, we can evaluate the figures recorded during this summer period favourably, even though the figures for economic impact per guest staying have dropped significantly in September". They pointed out that the average gross impact per guest stay (IBCA) was 134.37 euros, a decrease compared to last year which recorded 156.44 euros.

Good autumn

Forecasts for October and November are already close to the levels recorded in 2023, which was the Costa del Sol's best year. "The hotel occupancy forecasts for these months are not bad, although slightly below the data recorded in the same period in 2023," Luque said, however he expected the forecasts to rise as there are still some days for last minute bookings to come through. Occupancy in October will be 82.34% compared to the 83.71% recorded last year, according to the association's data, while November will record an occupancy rate of 66.41% compared to 71.48% in 2023.

By destinations, Torremolinos topped the table with 95.76% occupancy in September, followed by the Axarquia region where occupancy was 94.57%. Fuengirola is another of the municipalities with the highest volume of bookings, with 93.36% of rooms filled.

For October, occupancy forecasts place Torremolinos at the top of the ranking, with 89.54%, followed by Benalmádena with 86.92%, Aehcos said.

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