Distribución y Revenue Management

🏨 In Spain, hotel companies decreased by almost 4% in the past year, while the number of open establishments increased slightly by about 2% to 14,427. The peak was in 2018 with nearly 13,500 active hotel companies. Andalusia leads with 2,488 hotels and hostels, followed by Catalonia and Galicia. Hostels are divided into 1* silver (3,548) and 2-3* silver (2,726), whereas hotels are categorized by gold stars, with 4* gold hotels being the most prevalent at 2,509. Data from DIRCE as of January 1, 2023.

🏦 Booking Holdings, encompassing Booking.com, Priceline, Agoda, Kayak, and OpenTable, reported earnings of $2.517 billion for the third quarter, matching the prior year's profit. Nights booked increased by 8%, with revenue rising 9% to $8 billion, attributed to strong European performance. CEO Glenn Fogel highlighted cost efficiency and strategic initiatives for long-term positioning. The net profit of $2.5 billion excludes potential fines from Spain's competition authority, against which Booking has filed an appeal.

🏨 In Málaga, Costa del Sol, hotel occupancy rose to 86.7% in October, a 3% increase from 83.7% the previous year. Benalmádena led with 94.16% occupancy, followed by Torremolinos at 89.9%. Fuengirola and Marbella also had high rates at 88.4% and 82.3%. Despite this, average spending per client slightly decreased to €116.01 from €116.90 in October 2023. A decline to 62.9% occupancy in November and 49% in December is anticipated, compared to 71.4% and 56.8% in 2023, respectively.

🏖️ In Madrid's Four Seasons hotel, over 250 tourism professionals attended a roadshow organized by Dominican Republic Tourism on Thursday. Tourism Minister David Collado highlighted the country's recent successes, noting the arrival of 468,916 air travelers and 111,701 cruise passengers in September 2024. The Dominican Republic has welcomed 8.3 million visitors this year, a 10% increase from last year, nearing the 2024 goal of 11.5 million visitors. Airports have seen a 10-point jump in flight occupancy, with 6.4 million air tourists in the first nine months.

💻 Medina Hoteles focuses on technology to compete globally, where big chains own over 54% of rooms. They emphasize personalized service alongside technology, using 50” interactive totems and QR codes for guest information, and installing self check-in kiosks at two of their three hotels. Investments in energy-saving sensor systems and customer communication tools like chatbots and ReviewPro have been significant but manageable thanks to SAAS. José Medina will speak at TecnoHotel OnTour in Benidorm on November 21.

🏖️ El Gobierno aprobó 10.600 millones de euros en ayudas para los afectados por la DANA en la Comunidad Valenciana. Pymes y autónomos recibirán 838 millones, con solicitudes del 19 de noviembre al 31 de diciembre de 2023. Booking.com recurrió una multa de 413 millones de euros impuesta por la CNMC por prácticas que limitan la competencia. Trip.com muestra optimismo en su crecimiento en Europa, con más de 5,3 millones de descargas de su aplicación y un notable aumento en reservas de vuelos y hoteles.

🚀 International Airlines Group (IAG) compensated the Hidalgo family with €50 million for retracting the purchase of Air Europa on August 1 due to EU regulatory obstacles. Previously, IAG paid €75 million for a suspended integration deal in November 2019. The payment was confirmed in the Q3 2024 earnings report, revealing a net profit of €1.435 billion for the quarter, up from €1.230 billion the previous year, and €2.340 billion over nine months, compared to €2.151 billion in 2023. CEO Luis Gallego reported a 15.4% operating profit increase and a 21.6% margin improvement.

📍 Trip.com's General Manager for Europe, Andy Washington, remains positive about the company's growth in Spain, a key focus alongside France, Germany, Italy, and the UK in Europe. In just one year, the app has seen over 5.3 million downloads. The company, which reported a net profit of $1.4 billion globally in 2023, is optimistic about its evolution in Spain, particularly in Madrid and Barcelona, where it has a new office. With significant growth linked to airline relationships, more marketing investments are planned for 2025 to strengthen its positioning. Flight bookings in Europe have seen double-digit growth, while hotel bookings surged threefold year over year. International bookings from Spain rocketed by 432.78% compared to 2019, nearly double the European average of 296.76%. Spain ranks as the second most popular destination in Europe for Trip.com's international travelers, trailing the UK.

🌀 680 Imserso tourism program users affected by DANA, resulting in suspended or modified trips, mostly in the Valencian Community; 400 were from Valencia with 8 bus departures cancelled. Turismo Social (Ávoris) established a team for managing cancellations and modifications, prioritizing traveler safety. Affected users must process refunds via reembolsos@turismosocial.com with personal details and reason for request.

🏨 José María Rossell, starting at 22 years old, has dedicated over 5 decades to the tourism industry, becoming Andalucía's leading hotelier with 8,000 beds via the Senator hotel chain. In 2003, he received the Preferente Award from Antonio Ortega, Andalusian Tourism Councilor. Rossell was recognized by the Junta de Andalucía during the pandemic and also received an award from the Diputación de Almería for his business trajectory.