European Hotel Business Won’t Fully Recover Until 2024

In 2020, due to strict travel restrictions dictated by the Covid-19 pandemic, the European hotel industry has suffered 115 billion euro losses.

France and Germany saw a 43% and 44% decline respectively, which is, thanks to the high summer demand, relatively benign compared to other countries. In the UK, Italy, and Spain the industry lost 53%, 61% and 64% of revenue, says Euler Hermes, a global leader in credit insurance.

The company’s experts believe that the gradual removal of restrictions will allow hotels to come back to normal, and see some recovery in demand for the summer season. In 2021, Europe is likely to see revenues increase 28% compared to the previous year, which is still 39% lower than 2019 figures.

The countries, cities and hotels focused mainly on domestic tourism will be the fastest to recover.

Euler Hermes experts forecast that the weak demand will press hotels to resort to innovative tech solutions in an effort to tap into novel revenue streams.