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This Year Has Been a Record-Breaker for Tbilisi Hotels — Shalva Alaverdashvili
Co-founder of the Hotel Federation Shalva Alaverdashvili stated in an interview with http://internationalinvestment.biz/ that the current year has become a record one for the hospitality sector. According to Alaverdashvili, occupancy rates in Tbilisi hotels have not dropped below 90% since May, which is a very strong performance compared to previous years.
- Mr Shalva, to what do you attribute the fact that this year has been a record one for Tbilisi hotels, with occupancy not falling below 90% since May?
- Yes, I confirm that starting from May this year we had a very positive period. Since the pandemic, we haven't seen such strong indicators, and this year can be considered successful. The decisive factor was that tourists from Russia increased the most. Many visitors were redirected from Dubai; tourists from Central Asian countries and China were also added. So in terms of visitor numbers, this year was the best.
- Were there any downturns in tourist flow during the year, in which months, and what was the reason?
- This year, the most difficult months were March and April, when the war broke out in the region. Starting from 28 February, inbound tourist arrivals from Israel completely collapsed in March, and until mid-April we had a slump. At that time, this circumstance had a very negative impact on tourism, especially in Gudauri. However, as I mentioned, January and February saw positive figures, and from May onwards the situation became very good.
- Despite certain challenges, can you say that the sector will close this year with positive financial and operational results?
- Yes, as I have said, in terms of visitor numbers we have not had such a strong and fruitful year since the pandemic.
- And in conclusion, summing up the outgoing year, what are your expectations for the future?
- As for the future, I hope everything will be fine in the region and no more wars break out, because [hotel operations] depend precisely on that. We have quite a lot of bookings from Israel, but the same thing as last year could happen. If military operations in Israel resume, Gudauri will lose a huge number of guests. Accordingly, peace in the region is of paramount importance.