Accommodation prices melt away in Istanbul

According to data released by the Association of Turkish Hoteliers (TÜROB), while occupancy across Türkiye rose slightly this past February, Istanbul continued to decline. In Istanbul, the real downturn is being felt in prices. In Istanbul, where average prices at five-star hotels reached 200 Euros some three years ago, the average daily rate fell 25 percent over the two-month period to 68.1 Euros, while revenue per available room fell 28.5 percent to 31.5 Euros.

Occupancy figures for Türkiye's accommodation sector in the first two months of the year have been announced. The February 2017 Country Performance Report prepared by global data and analytics company STR Global for the Association of Turkish Hoteliers (TÜROB) was released. According to the results of the report evaluated by TÜROB, Türkiye's hotel occupancy in February 2017 was recorded at 50.5 percent, an increase of 1.7 percent compared to the same month in 2016. While occupancy across Türkiye rose slightly, Istanbul continued to decline. Istanbul's occupancy rate, which was 47.6 percent in February 2016, fell 0.7 percent to 47.2 percent in February 2017. The decline in prices in Istanbul, however, reached very serious levels. In February 2017, the average daily rate in Istanbul fell 19.3 percent to 70.3 Euros. In February 2016, this figure had been 87.1 Euros. Revenue per available room (RevPAR), calculated over the total number of rooms, fell 19.9 percent to 33.2 Euros. In February 2016, this figure had been 41.4 Euros.

The lowest in Europe
Over the first two months, occupancy in Istanbul fell 4 percent compared to the same period last year, coming in at 46.4 percent. In Istanbul, where the average price at five-star hotels approached 200 Euros up until three years ago, the average daily rate fell 25 percent over the two-month period to 68.1 Euros, while revenue per available room fell 28.5 percent to 31.5 Euros. With this rate of decline, Istanbul became the destination that experienced the largest drop among European destinations in February 2017. At the same time, with a 25.3 percent decline in the Average Daily Rate (ADR) and a 28.3 percent decline in revenue per available room (RevPAR), Istanbul was the European destination that suffered the greatest revenue loss in February 2017.

Istanbul on the verge of losing 2017 as well
Timur Bayındır, Chairman of the Association of Turkish Hoteliers (TÜROB), stated that Istanbul must now be addressed with special measures in tourism, noting that otherwise 2017 would also be a lost year. Stating that Istanbul is the city feeling the tourism difficulties the most, Bayındır said that prices in the accommodation sector had reached a serious level. Bayındır said, "While prices are falling this much, the problem of excess capacity in accommodation is also negatively affecting the sector. Measures need to be taken without delay, especially for Istanbul tourism."

Occupancy (%)
LocationFebruary 2017February 2016Last 12-month average
Türkiye50.549.749.0
Istanbul47.247.646.4
Europe average64.562.760.6

Average Daily Rate ADR (Euro)
LocationFebruary 2017February 2016Last 12-month average
Türkiye58.571.356.8
Istanbul70.387.168.14
Europe average100.5100.399.5

Revenue per available room over total number of rooms RevPAR (Euro)
LocationFebruary 2017February 2016Last 12-month average
Türkiye29.535.427.8
Istanbul33.2441.4831.59
Europe average64.862.960.2