Hotel bookings better than expected but still on low side

TOTAL hotel occupation in Majorca registered at 78.65 per cent of capacity for the month of June this year. The figure shows a growth of 3.28 per cent in relation to the same month in 2002 when total occupation was at only 75.37 per cent of capacity. These figures were confirmed in a survey carried out by the Majorca Hoteliers' Federation.
In spite of the improvement on last year, the figure remains substantially lower than previous years. During the period 1998-2001, occupation percentages in June were successively 89.4; 94.1; 86.9; and 84.9 per cent. In the Federation's report, it was commented that “in general, and saving exceptions, actual occupation has exceeded forecast”.
It added that three-star hotel occupancy which reflects least growth has experienced an increase of 1.49 per cent.
Examining different tourist zones, it appears that the area that has benefitted most from the rise in tourist numbers is the beach locality of Muro, with 87.72 per cent, while that of Sóller with 49.69 per cent is the area showing the lowest average of hotel bookings. The Federation of Hotelier's latest forecast for the current month of July is for an occupancy of 72.9 per cent.