May 27--Abu Dhabi's 142 hotels and hotel apartments had their best April on record last month with rises in most key performance indicators, according to recently released figures by the Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority, or TCA Abu Dhabi.

During the month, over 236,704 guests checked in at Abu Dhabi accommodations, a 20 per cent rise on April last year, with guest nights jumping by almost a third to 738,797.

"One of the most encouraging results is the progress we are making, with our partners, in expanding the average length of stay of Abu Dhabi's hotel guests and this will remain one of our key deliverables throughout the coming months," said Mubarak Al Muhairi, director-general of TCA Abu Dhabi.

The average length of stay of hotel guests during April was 3.12 nights, a growth of eight per cent on the same month last year. During April, Abu Dhabi's occupancy rate climbed 12 per cent and revenue rose 18 per cent to Dh468,474,193 ($127.6 million). Room revenue was up 21 per cent to Dh238,135,624 while food and beverage revenue rose 16 per cent to Dh183,853,608. A slight dip of six per cent in the average room rate, which stood at Dh453, was also recorded during April.

"There were a number of key events in Abu Dhabi during April -- the hosting of the World Travel & Tourism Council Global Summit and the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair among them -- and these will have delivered enhanced performance and demonstrate the importance of business events and exhibitions in the tourism mix," added Al Muhairi.

April continued a month-on-month upward trend in guests, guest nights and average length of stay for Abu Dhabi, which this year is targeting an annual hotel guest figure of 2.5 million.

The performance for the first four months of this year shows a 10 per cent growth in hotel guests to 868,121, a 25 per cent rise in guest nights to 2.9 million, a 13 per cent rise in average length of stay to 3.29 nights, a nine per cent increase in occupancy to 73 per cent and a 16 per cent surge in total revenue to Dh1.9 billion with a slight dip of three per cent in average room rate to Dh480.

Domestic tourism remains solid with 283,856 guests from within the UAE, delivering 649,114 guest nights in the first four months of the year with an average length of stay of 2.29. On the international front, the UK remains the emirate's largest overseas source market for hotel guests with some 54,050 Britons staying in Abu Dhabi's hotels in the first four months, a 10 per cent rise on the same period last year. They stayed, on average, 4.71 nights, up 11 per cent on the corresponding period and accounted for 254,768 guest nights, up 22 per cent.

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(c)2013 the Khaleej Times (Dubai, United Arab Emirates)

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