Tourism was in full swing in the Bilbao capital but the pandemic arrived to destroy all expectations. Six years of increases had been chained, an upward curve that was cut in March of last year and the statistics are full of minimum figures. In 2020, 349,737 travelers entered Bilbao, according to the Municipal Observatory. In 2019 that same table had been on the verge of one million visitors.
After the harsh confinement, in summer mobility was opened allowing a “meager” recovery mainly because visitors from other autonomous communities arrived. State tourists recorded a drop of 52%, compared to 78% of foreigners. The overnight stays followed an identical trend.
Average occupancy
The 87 accommodations had an average occupancy of 31%. A figure that according to this report is “impossible to sustain since it would mean the bankruptcy of business activity.” There are small differences between categories: there was a little more movement in the lower category establishments. And that the hotels were at half gas and with much cheaper prices. These “zero” expectations led to a resizing of the offer, with 2,947 rooms available, 32% less than usual. And a reduced rate -26% lower-, with 68.8 euros on average.
Labor market in the tourism sector
The X-ray is completed with the impact on the labor market, with a job destruction that affected 585 people. 738 workers were active, when a year earlier they had reached 1,323. The cut was 44% and was concentrated in large hotel chains.
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