Alex Trelinski
COSTA Blanca hotel occupancy reached 85.8% in August- the highest monthly number since the COVID-19 pandemic broke out in March 2020.
El Campello led the way with a 96.4% occupancy rate.
Domestic bookings drove the market with UK arrivals only accounting for 12% of foreign reservations.
The figures have been produced by the Alicante Province Hotels and Tourist Accommodation Association.
Last month’s occupancy total was 28.5% up on August 2020 and 7.9% more than July.
In the pre-pandemic era of August 2019, occupancy hit 92.4%.
Some parts of the Costa Blanca notched up numbers that were higher than two years ago.
El Campello registered 96.4%, followed by Elche on 96.3% and Alicante’s Playa de San Juan area on 96.1%.
Other busy spots included Javea on 95.8% and Santa Pola with 93.5%.
The association said that 52% of bookings were from domestic customers.
“The proportions are similar to those in July and reflect the stagnation of international visitors due to the pandemic,” it commented.
The largest amount of Spanish reservations came from the Madrid region(37.8%) followed by local bookings from the Valencian Community(18.6%).
The foreign visitor breakdown is led by France(23.7%) with the United Kingdom well down on traditional levels, coming in at 12%, followed by the Netherlands on 8.7%.
