Tourism - 1. quarter of 2008

In Q1 2008, a total of 2.6 million guests arrived at collective accommodation establishments; this was 10.5% up on Q1 2007. The number of overnight stays totalled 8.2 million; this was 6.8% up year-on-year. Development in occupancy data was influenced by both a shift of Easter holiday to March and better snow conditions compared to the same quarter of last year.
Graph 1
In Q1 2008, a total of 2.6 million guest arrivals was recorded at collective accommodation establishments; this was 10.5% up on Q1 2007. There was the same number of domestic and foreign tourists (1.3 million) there; this was +8.5% and +12.6% respectively. Growth in guests’ arrivals was particularly influenced not only by the fact that Easter holiday this year was celebrated in March (in 2007 it was in April) but also by higher interest in stays in spa resorts (the number of arrivals increased by 14.9% and the number of overnight stays by 13.5%). The growth in number of holidaymakers was connected, among others, with better snow conditions compared to the same period of the last year and with increasing interest in stays in spa resorts outside the main season (the increase of guests’ arrivals was almost equal as for the foreigners but as for the number of overnight stays it was only +1.0%).

The highest number of tourists (one third) was shown at category of three-star hotels in which the highest growth in guests’ arrival (+16.3%) was reported as well. There were 56% of nonresidents at this category of hotels (+18% year-on-year). The growth was recorded at five and four-star hotels (+12.8% and +15.3%, respectively) in which the most of the tourists are from abroad (at five-star hotels 92% and four-star hotels 77%). Domestic guests use services of such hotels only little although there were almost 30% more guests at four-star hotels compared to the same quarter in 2007.

In Q1 2008, the highest number of tourists was recorded in city and spa regions as well as in regions which are suitable for winter sport activities. Capital Prague were visited by 34.6% of a total number of guests, next was Kralovehradecky Region with only 10.4%. The highest number of nonresidents came to Prague (58.5%) and to Karlovarsky Region (8.2%). As far as tourism regions is concerned the highest number of guests arrived to Prague and then to Krkonose Mountains where the highest growth was reported in terms of both arrivals (by 21.2%) and overnight stays (by 12.8%).

The number of guests’ overnight stays in Q1 2008, reached 8.2 million; this was 6.8% up on Q1 2007. The number of overnight stays of nonresidents (4.3 million) increased by 5.5% and residents by 8.3%. An average number of overnight stays was 3.2 nights in Q1 2008, i.e. -0.1 night year-on-year.

As for the country of permanent residence, most tourists, as usual, came from Germany, Great Britain, Russia and Italy, whereas Russia and Italy swapped their positions compared to previous year. The highest growth in number of guests’ arrivals was recorded by Spain (+55%) and Poland (+37%).

Net use of rooms of collective accommodation establishments was 37.4% in Q1 2008 (+1.7 percentage point year-on-year). Hotels reached 40.5% of net use of rooms; the highest net use was reported by five-star hotels (50.9%) and four-star hotels (48.1%). Three-star hotels were used only from 35.6%. As for the regions the highest net use of rooms was reported in Karlovarsky Region (49.8%) and in Capital Prague (47.2%); the lowest net use of rooms was in Vysocina (21.0%) and Plzensky Region (23.9%).

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Methodological note:
1) Data on guests at collective tourist accommodation establishments are obtained from the monthly CR1-12 sample survey and the quarterly CR2-04 survey. Data mentioned are sums of the data processed from submitted questionnaires and imputed data on the accommodation establishments that failed to report. Net use of room is the number of overnight stays in a particular period divided by the number of room-days (stated as a percentage).

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Contact: Hellerová Alena, phone: (+420) 274052921, E-mail: alena.hellerova@csu.gov.cz
Data source: CZSO direct survey in collective accommodation establishments
End of data collection: 7 April 2008
End of data processing: 12 May 2008
The data are preliminary; revised data for all quarters of 2008 will be known in February 2009.
Quarterly data since 2000 are available in time series (/produkty/cru_ts).
As of 30 April 2008 data for 2007 were revised.