A Deloitte analysis of STR Global data shows that Mideast hotels are faring better than most others during the global economic downturn. The key industry benchmark, revenue per available room (RevPar) dropped 18.1 percent in the region during the first ten months of the year, but the RevPar figure is still better than in Asia Pacific and the Americas.
Rob O’Hanlon, tourism, hospitality, and leisure partner for Deloitte in the Middle East, said “It’s been tough on a global basis, and the region has taken its share of the pain, but benchmarked against Europe and the Americas, the Middle East is still in very comfortable territory.” Hotel occupancy rates in the Middle East were also higher at 61.5 percent, compared to 59.5 percent in Asia Pacific, and 56.9 percent in the Americas. O’Hanlon said that although Dubai’s average daily room rate fell 23.8 percent to $228.87 in 2009, this is still the second highest in the world.
