The global slowdown and the rise in the number of new hotels in Dubai have forced many properties in the emirate to offer big discounts and unique promotions to attract guests during the summer. A new report says that the hotel industry in Dubai is continuing to witness declines in occupancy levels and revenue per available room (RevPAR) mainly due to a drop in business travel and international tourist arrivals.
Occupancy levels in the emirate in the first five months of the year fell by 13.1%, the report said, while RevPar declined sharply by 35.3% when compared to the same period in 2008.
The steep drop in RevPAR is due to the fact that many hotels have been forced to reduce room rates to attract guests, said Rob O'Hanlon.
'In Dubai, new supply continues to come online at the same time that the market is seeing a slowdown in demand, so you've got a double hit there,' he said.
'A year ago hotels were in a particularly dynamic situation where there was high demand and tight supply, but the overheating of demand is over and as a result I would suggest that room rates are normalizing,' he told AME Info.
