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Bookings to Cyprus declines five to 10 per cent this year

Thursday, June 20, 2019

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After three record years, bookings to Cyprus have declined five to 10 per cent this year, depending on area, said hoteliers.

 

Uncertainty surrounding Brexit, Russian Ruble exchange rates with the Euro, and the re-emergence of competitive neighboring markets like Egypt and Turkey are all having an impact, according to chairman of the Cyprus Hotels Association (Pasyxe) Haris Loizides.

 

Loizides said, “The target set for 2019 and 2020 was to stabilise at the satisfactory levels of 2018. There is currently a noticeable reduction of five to 10 per cent in bookings depending on the tourist area.”

 

Besides political issues, Loizides said that Cyprus had been badly affected by the loss of Germania airlines and Cypriot company Cobalt stressing the need for new incentives to airlines as the lack of connectivity “makes the situation even more difficult”.

 

“We are going through a transitional period of correction, which we must use to upgrade our tourist product as a whole. In order to be able to continue the upward trend of arrivals, but above all, revenue,” Loizides added.

 

Loizides said that modern tourists are no longer satisfied with sun and sea and are more interested in a holistic experience. “They measure the level of service they enjoy from the airport and the accommodation to the tavern, to the entertainment, to the quality and professionalism of the staff,” he added.

 

In this respect, he warned that a negative comment from a tourist on social media might affect a hotel or restaurant.

 

Loizides said further, “Conversely, there is no better advertising for the restaurant than a positive Tripadvisor review and a photo accompanied by positive comments on social media networks. Therefore, we must not ignore the fact that the internet is a transmitter of messages to every corner of the globe and largely defines the image of a tourist destination as a whole.”

 

“Cyprus cannot escape, of course, the trends and needs of the globalised tourist market but where there are no rules, fatal problems are born and unpleasant situations are created,” said Loizides.

 

He said that the best way for the industry is to continuously raise the bar and work persistently to improve the product “move ahead of our competitors rather than following or copying them eventually”.

 

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