COLOMBO: Hotel rates in Sri Lanka have increased sharply in 2016, in tandem with a double-digit rise in visitor arrivals.
Ahead of the inaugural Asia Hotel & Tourism Investment Conference (AHTIC), which takes place in Colombo later this month, the hotel analysts at STR have revealed that Sri Lanka’s average daily rate (ADR) jumped 15.0% to LKR15,806.02 (approx. US$104) in the first nine months of 2016. Occupancy remained almost flat at 66.4%, but revenue per available room (revPAR) increased 14.9% to LKR10,495.60.
This growth in ADR is in line with a 14.6% rise in international visitor arrivals in the first nine months of 2016, although rising room supply has prevented a similar rise in occupancy.
An increase in the number of luxury hotels however, contributed to the rising ADR. STR revealed that more than 3,600 of the 4,300 rooms in Sri Lanka’s pipeline fall in the luxury and upscale categories, which should further lift the country’s average rate in future.
“The market for hotel accommodation in Sri Lanka is decidedly healthy, with double-digit growth in occupancy for the past three years and this year, we have seen an uplift in average daily rates too,” said Jesper Palmqvist, STR’s area director for Asia Pacific.
Palmqvist will provide a presentation on the Sri Lankan hotel sector at AHTIC, which takes place from 27-29 November at the Hilton Colombo.
