Abu Dhabi hotels achieve 80.79% occupancy rates during 2nd quarter of 2006

Hotel apartments have achieved the highest average occupancy rate, registering over 90% during the same period, followed by 4-star and 3-star hotels, which recorded 88%.
Five-star hotels achieved a 77.5 % occupancy rate.

According to recent data released by the studies& Statistics Department of the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA), occupancy rate in Abu Dhabi Emirate peaked in April with an average of 90% and glided to 84.5 % in May and 84% in June respectively.

The statement say said that Abu Dhabi hotels also performed well during the second quarter, recording an average occupancy of 86.3%, with the month of April reaching 89.7 %, thus outperforming May and June with 84.4% and 83.9% respectively.

These positive indices come as good news for the ADTA as they paint a rosy picture about the tourism sector performance in the emirate. The good performance by the hotels would encourage local and foreign investors to pump more investments into the tourism sector which is gaining reputation a promising investment sphere.

Abu Dhabi emirate is embarking on a plan to add over 4500 new hotel rooms during the next three years so as to meet the increasing demand in the emirate. The new project will enhance the capacity by 45 %, increasing it from 10,000 to 14000 rooms.

The emirate is bracing for increasing demand for more rooms as indicated by the current occupancy trends. The massive infrastructure projects currently being undertaken by the emirate are meant to respond to the looming needs of the hospitality sector.

Occupancy rate in Abu Dhabi hotels and hotel apartments recorded significant growth in recent years, reaching 2 million occupants in 2005. With this figure, the hotels sector achieved a 25% growth, which is considered one of the highest in the region.

A recent independent report by a specialized firm Delloitte and Touche rated Abu Dhabi Emirate as topping the world in occupancy rates 84.4% in 2005 by beating some of the world's most famous cities such as Paris, Sydney, Singapore and others.