Although the economic crisis is having a negative effect on national tourism, Spaniards are still travelling despite the fact that they are reducing the length of trips and economizing at the destination, as a result of the financial storm that has been responsible for a significant drop in travel. This is the chief conclusion of the study co-ordinated by the Elena Alfaro, lecturer in Experience Marketing and director of the CFI Business Development Group, in collaboration with Antonio Lopez de Avila, director of the Tourist Enterprise Management Master Programme of the IE Business School.
The results of the study identify two main customer profiles: 49% of travellers staying at Spanish hotels are booking less room nights, and, in addition, spending less at hotels; and similarly, 40.8% of travellers expressly ask for the cheapest rooms, as well as shortening their stay.
“Contrary to what could be deduced from the drastic drop in consumption caused by the economic crisis, Spanish tourists don’t want to sacrifice travel, although this means that they have to reduce their budget and adapt to the circumstances,” Elena Alfaro explains. “Spanish tourists’ travel habits haven’t changed, but their attitude has been modified by the crisis,” Antonio Lopez de Avila states. “In fact, until a short time ago the trend has been one of a gradual increase in prices and, above all, in hotel services. At present, whether the purpose of the trip is business or pleasure, travellers try to control spending as much as possible.”
Although 48.5% of the hotels consulted recognized that there has been a significant drop in the number of clients, 69% state that the most common trend is for shorter stays. Only 7.3% say that they have not detected any change in consumer behaviour, guests behaving much in the same way as they did last year.
Client behaviour%Shorter stays68.9%Use less services to economize58.3%Ask for the cheapest rooms51.9%Less clients48.5%No changes detected7.3%
The results for last Easter confirm that Spaniards are still keen on travelling, although spending less and opting for national destinations, instead of foreign ones. An average occupancy rate of 75%, according to figures supplied by the Spanish Hotel Confederation (CEHAT), was due in part to good weather, which is still a key factor for generating last-minute bookings.
Likewise, the results of the study show that the behaviour of Spanish tourists is beginning to resemble the profile that has traditionally characterized other nationalities. If Spanish travellers, as with those from Scandinavia, distinguished themselves up until now by spending more at the destination, their behaviour is now converging with the European average.
Anti-crisis strategies
Faced with this bleak panorama, the chief strategy implemented by the Spanish hospitality industry – in line with other countries – is still aimed at cutting prices and creating packages that encourage guests to lengthen their stay, or to use hotel services at a lower cost or even free of charge.
“Some of the large national chains have launched promotions in which the chief inducement is a sharp reduction in room costs under the condition that bookings are made in advance, which cannot be cancelled, so as to guarantee a minimum occupancy rate,” Elena Alfaro says. “In other cases, hotels have designed promotions normally keyed to business travellers, which include breakfast or meals at discount rates in order to attract an important part of the expenditure made by this type of tourist during his or her trip.” Antonio Lopez de Avila highlights the uncommon trend of “all inclusive” packages. “This Easter, a large number of hotels have promoted these packages, because it helps tourists control their spending.”
With regard to medium- and lower-scale hotels, the basic trend that has been detected is competition based exclusively on prices. This is not the case, though, of the upper- and premium-scale properties, where the most relevant differentiating factor is quality. “When all is said and done, quality perception plays an important part in whether travellers decide to book hotel or apartment accommodation,” Lopez de Avila states. “Although nearly all of the hotel chains are introducing special offers and price cuts, this is not a really decisive factor as regards upper-scale properties, since this can damage price and brand integrity,” Elena Alfaro indicates. “In such a case, the implementation of experience marketing is proving to be decisive, since it allows hotels to offer guests a unique and unrepeatable experience, instead of just accommodation.”
