Tourist Inflow to Qatar Rises 11% in Q1

Doha, April 21 (QNA) - The number of tourists visiting Qatar in the first quarter of 2015 increased by 11% to 841,025 and hotel occupancy rates by 8% compared to the same period in 2014, Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) said Monday. In the first quarter period January-March performance report released here today, QTA said, "Main tourism indicators show higher growth compared to the same period last year." Tourist arrivals from the Americas grew 17%, from Europe 9%, and from Asia by 7%. Arrivals from the GCC, Qatar's largest source market, grew 16% in Q1 2015. Arrivals from other Arab and other African nations remained approximately same, QTA said. Tourists from Saudi Arabia, up 28%, propelled growth in the number of visitors from GCC countries. The majority of this growth took place in March when visitor arrivals grew by 82% compared to March 2014, with 241,008 Saudi visitors entering Qatar. During the same period visitor arrivals from Bahrain, Oman, and UAE grew modestly in Q1 2015. Hotels from all segments reported growth in the first quarter of 2015. Five-star hotels and deluxe apartments reported occupancy rates slightly below 80%. Occupancy rates across all hotels reached 82% in Q1 2015, up 8% in comparison to the same period last year. Average room rates dropped slightly (by 1%), primarily driven by drops in 4-, 2- and 1-Star hotels. Revenue per available room (RevPAR- a benchmark for performance) rose by 17% in 5-star hotels and by 35% in 3-star hotels compared to the same period last year. QTA began collecting performance statistics from Hotel Apartments for the first time in January 2015. Q1 hotel apartments' data shows strong performance similar to hotel properties, with an average occupancy rate of 80% across all related establishments. Qatar hosted many high-quality entertainment events, as well as a growing number of Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) activities during the first quarter of 2015, which spurred growth in tourism sector. QTA said training staff, appointing judicial commissioners to monitor hotels, organising seminars, workshops, hosting large scale conferences and exhibitions in Qatar such as Doha Jewellery and Watches Exhibition 2015, and the 5th Qatar International Motor Show and participating in international trade fairs boosted growth in the first quarter of 2015. QTA won the 'Best Arab Government Tourism Authority 2015 Award' for attracting highest tourist inflow rate in the Arab world in 2014, the authority said. (QNA)