Sharm El-Sheikh and Hurghada hotels were marked as touristic hotspots with a forecasted growth of 97% and 62%, respectively in revenues per available rooms (RevPAR). The surge is a result of recovering from the effects of the Metrojet incident in 2015, according to Colliers International’s “The MENA Hotel Forecast November 2017” report.
Moreover, the report indicates that Alexandria’s hotels are forecast to witness 17% growth in RevPAR in the same period, while Cairo hotels are expected to witness a moderate increase of 8% in RevPAR.
According to the report, both UAE’s Abu Dhabi and Fujairah maintained their confident and steady performance in the period from November 2017 to January 2018, with 1% and -1% expected RevPAR growth, respectively.
On the other hand, Saudi Arabia’s Al-Khobar and Jordan’s Amman continue to feel the negative consequences of decreased oil prices and limited corporate and MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, and Events) demand. Al-Khobar and Amman are expected to respectively witness 12% and 14% decline in RevPAR during the same period.
Regarding the Guest Experience Index (GEI), Colliers noted that Cairo scored 76 out of 100 in the GEI for November 2017, marking a six-point increase, while Alexandria scored 74, Sharm El-Sheikh scored 77, Hurghada scored 80, and Palm Jumeirah scored the highest GEI score of 91.
The reports indicated that the highest GEI growth was witnessed in Alexandria with a seven-point increase, as a result of increases in four-star and five-star hotels GEI scores, with business travellers and families being the largest sources of guest reviews in Alexandria. Meanwhile, Fujairah and Manama, Bahrain witnessed the highest recorded drop in the GEI score with a five-point decrease, reaching 72 and 74 GEI scores respectively.
