Prague - Accommodation facilities in the Czech Republic saw customer numbers decline in the third quarter of 2008. The number of foreign visitors was slightly higher than a year earlier, but there was a marked drop in Czechs holidaymakers, said the Czech Statistical Office (ČSÚ).
"Only hotels with three or more stars experienced a growth. On the other hand, a sharp decline hit operators of campsites, hostels, cabins and other cheaper facilities, which mostly rely on Czech tourists and which also tend to be affected by weather," ČSÚ wrote in its press release.
Tourists stay fewer nights, spend less
Czech accommodation facilities served 4.4 million guests in the third quarter, 3.3 percent less than in the same period last year. What made things even worse, visitors on average stayed for fewer nights, cutting the overall number of overnights by 5.9 percent to 14.3 million.
The share of foreign and Czech guests evened out at 2.2 million for each group, which represented a 0.4 percent increase for foreigners, but a 6.6 percent decline for locals.
An average tourist has spent CZK 2,181 per day this year, which is 14 percent less than a year earlier, according to the Regional Development Ministry. Minister Jiří Čunek says the decline is entirely due to the strong Czech crown, which has made Czech shops, restaurants and hotels more expensive for foreigners.
Few go outside Prague or Karlovy Vary
A vast majority of foreign visitors go to Prague or Karlovy Vary, where most luxury hotels are concentrated, while the rest of the country is seriously lagging behind.
"Other regions have experienced a decline, which was sharpest in Central Bohemia and Vysočina. The average length of stay has dropped from 3.4 to 3.3 nights," writes ČSÚ.
Since 1989, the Czech Republic has experienced massive boom of tourism. The total number of foreign visitors reached 6.7 million last year against 2.6 million in 1992 when records started to be kept.
"Numbers of foreign tourists have multiplied since the Velvet Revolution," says Tomio Okamura, president of the Association of Czech Travel Agencies (AČCKA). He points out that last year Prague received around 4 million tourists, three-times more than the city's population.
