Hotel occupancy rates fall in H1 as average rates down 2%

Taipei, Aug. 28 (CNA) Hotel occupancy rates in Taiwan fell in the first half of this year as Taiwanese travelers favored traveling abroad in the post-COVID-19 era, while the average daily rate also shifted down about 2 percent from a year earlier during the same period, the Tourism Administration said Wednesday.

Data compiled by the agency showed the average occupancy rate of licensed tourist and general hotels fell 2.9 percentage points from a year earlier to 47.3 percent in the first half of the year. Meanwhile, the average occupancy rate of bed & breakfasts also dropped 3.84 percentage points to 22.69 percent.

The agency said fluctuations in foreign exchange rates also prompted locals to choose overseas destinations, referring to the steep depreciation of the Japanese yen against the Taiwan dollar.

According to the administration's latest tally, the number of Taiwanese travelers visiting Japan soared 71.25 percent from a year earlier to about 1.4 million, making it the top choice for Taiwanese tourists.

On April 3, a 7.2 earthquake jolted off Hualien, eastern Taiwan, the strongest temblor in the country for 25 years. The administration said the quake dealt a blow to the county's tourism industry.

Hotel occupancy rates in Hualien fell to only 10-20 percent in the first half of this year, down from 40-60 percent in the same period last year, the agency said.

In the first half of this year, the average daily price of tourist and general hotels in Taiwan was NT$2,885 (US$90.30), down NT$71, or 2.4 percent from a year earlier, the data showed.

Regarding B&Bs, the average daily price also fell NT$45, or 1.78 percent from a year earlier to NT$2,488 in the January-June period, the administration said.

Among the 3,438 licensed tourist and general hotels in Taiwan, 2,693, or about 78 percent, reported below average daily hotel prices in the first half of this year, it said, adding the statistics showed the local hotel industry provided a range of services for a wide range of budgets.

The administration said the fall in the average daily hotel price for the first half of this year showed price growth in Taiwan appeared to have stalled.

In the first quarter of this year, the average daily price of tourist and general hotels stood at NT$3,135, up 3.4 percent from a year earlier, with the administration citing inflation as the reason behind the growth.