Print Preview : All things considered, not a bad year for Berlin

All things considered, not a bad year for Berlin
2000 was a record year for Berlin<.>, Germany`s new capital, with a 20 per cent increase in tourist arrivals and overnights. So it would have been a lot to expect another year of solid growth in 2001, even without the events of 11 September. In fact, there was already stagnation in arrivals in the first nine months of the year, and overnights in all forms of commercial accommodation rose by only 1.2 per cent over the period.

By comparison, the final results for the full 12 months of last year - a decline of 1.5 per cent in arrivals and 0.8 per cent in nights - was not too disappointing. Most leading markets registered decreases with the exception of Spain - which defied the general trends and recorded double-digit growth - the Netherlands and the UK.

It should be pointed out that, in 2000, the US market grew by more than 35 per cent in terms of arrivals, as did Italy, and the UK was up 30 per cent. Japan recorded a 23 per cent increase that year. In line with trends to other European destinations the US market started to slow in the early months of 2001, and Japan was also well down before 11 September.

The German market accounts for a staggering 76 per cent of total arrivals and 73 per cent of overnight volume, contributing to making Berlin the country`s leading urban destination. Interestingly, it has also become the best-selling city-break destination for German tour operators, moving ahead of London last year. Dertour, the market leader for city breaks in Germany sold 130,000 in 2001 and is expanding capacity. Berlin is also the new frontrunner for TUI Schone Ferien - again ousting London from first place in the operator`s favourite city ranking - and for Neckermann Reisen, the sale of Berlin packages almost doubled in 2001.

Visitor expenditure is estimated at some EUR5.18 billion for 2001, up 31 per cent on 1998`s level. Over the same three years the number of people employed in tourism in Berlin has risen by 43 per cent to 66,000. Clearly the political and cultural changes of the past decade in Berlin have had a profound impact on the city`s tourism. Although it still ranks behind Munich in terms of international arrivals, it is expected to move ahead of Munich in the next couple of years.

Berlin currently has some 63,000 beds in 550 hotels and other forms of commercial accommodation. However, new hotels under construction and on the drawing board will increase this number to over 68,000 by next year - a higher bed capacity than New York`s. The disadvantage with the rapid growth in capacity over the last few years - especially in the upmarket categories - means that yields and occupancies are still below the average for European capitals.
Among the new hotels of interest, one should mention the 320-room Swissotel that opened on Kurfurstendamm in September 2001. Another big project is the hotel and business centre, Dom Aquaree, which is scheduled to open in September 2003 under Radisson SAS management on the site of the demolished Radisson SAS Palasthotel. The 400-room property is costing EUR446 million, or EUR1.12 million per room.

Maritim will also open a 500-room hotel close to the Culture Forum in 2003 and both Ritz Carlton and Marriott are due to open hotels on Potsdamer Platz in 2003-04. The west of Berlin will be home to one of the largest hotels in Europe - a 130-metre tower with 1,200 rooms/2,400 beds. And finally, Estrel, until now the largest hotel in Germany with 2,250 beds, will add a new 20-storey new building with 500 rooms and a multi-purpose, 10,000-capacity hall for conferences and sporting events. Theodore Koumelis - Monday, March 25, 2002