WINTER tourism has fallen by 20 per cent since 2003, with the Strategic Plan for tourism failing to achieve the goals that were set three years ago.
The percentage of tourist arrivals during the winter months of 2003 was 15 per cent of the total tourist arrivals, whereas in 2006 the percentage had fallen to around 11.9 per cent. Specifically, for the month of November, the reduction in tourist arrivals from 2004 to 2006 was 16 per cent, with tourist arrivals in November 2004 being 114,000 and in 2006 approximately 96,000.
Since the implementation of the Strategic Plan for Tourism in 2003 – a plan which included the improvement of winter tourism – there has been a decrease of 20 per cent in the number of tourist arrivals during the four winter months of November, December, January and February.
According to Pantelis Ioannides of the Cyprus Tourism Organisation (CTO), 2006 was a difficult year for tourism in Cyprus. “The year 2006 was a hard period for tourism, mainly due to events which unfolded in the summer, with Cyprus providing refuge for many people who fled Lebanon. This situation at the airport put many people off traveling to the island.
“Also, due to the terror threat in the summer in the UK, British tourists, which are the majority of tourists who come to Cyprus, may have been less willing to travel during the winter months,” he said yesterday.
However, Ioannides was not too downcast on the statistics for 2006, because despite the fall in arrivals, revenue from tourism increased last year compared to 2005. “There may have been a decrease in arrivals in relation to 2005, but the amount of money coming to Cyprus from tourism has increased. In the first 11 months of last year, there was an increase of two and a half per cent in revenue from tourists compared to 2005,” he explained.
Ioannides added that an increase of 5.2 per cent in expenditure per tourist was noted for 2006, meaning visitors were spending more during their holidays.
One reason Cyprus may not be such an attractive holiday destination is the cost of flights to and from the island, especially from the UK. There are currently no low-cost airlines flying to Cyprus, but according to Zacharias Ioannides of the Hoteliers’ Association, that is set to change.
“For now, it is definitely a drawback; low-cost airlines have expanded the potential market to people who would otherwise not have had the opportunity to travel. However, the CTO are currently in negotiations to attract low-cost airlines and it should be noted that from March, Monarch Air have scheduled four flights per week from the UK to Cyprus, while discussions with other airlines are ongoing,” he said.
Asked about the main reason for this fall in winter tourism, both the CTO spokesman and the Director General of the Hoteliers’ Association agreed the problem was growing competition from other holiday destinations.
“New winter destinations with the drastic development observed in countries such as Egypt, with the Red Sea Riviera and Sharm el Sheikh, as well as Tunisia, Morocco and even Libya have developed. Through strategic planning and market plans as well as very attractive rates and incentives to foreign investors, they have developed into tourist resorts of a high standard,” said Ioannides of the Hoteliers’ Association.
He said there was a lot to be done to stop the trend of tourists looking elsewhere. “There is a concerted effort being made between the public and the private sector; for example, the development of the airport, the creation of golf courses to add to the three already existing ones, the creation of theme parks, as well as the intensification of advertising and promotional campaigns, thus enhancing the awareness of the potential visitors on the beauty of Cyprus,” he said.
When questioned about his predictions for 2007, Ioannides said hoteliers had no choice but to hope for the best. “Tourist professionals in Cyprus, because of the vital role of their sector to the economy, have no other option but to be optimistic and work consistently for the reversal of the negative trend of tourist affairs, both in terms of tourist arrivals as well as revenue,” he said.
