Cyprus hoteliers keep summer in sight as Easter period proves difficult

Cyprus hoteliers are facing a difficult Easter period, with cancellations in March and April rising sharply after the outbreak of fighting in the region, although bookings for the rest of the summer are broadly keeping pace, the director-general of the Cyprus Hotel Association (Pasyxe), Christos Angelides, said this week.

Speaking to CNN, Angelides said the sector had not experienced “100 per cent cancellation”, but was hit by “a 40 per cent” drop in March and a similar picture in April, describing the Easter period as particularly challenging.

“From then on, we are experiencing a balance, an even situation between cancellations and bookings for the rest of the summer,” he said, adding that “the April and Easter period looks challenging and we are doing our best to reverse the situation.”

Angelides made clear that Cyprus would not respond with heavy discounting, warning that cutting prices too aggressively would damage the island’s long-built reputation as a quality destination.

“When you discount heavily your destination and your hotels, it appears as a cheap trick,” he said, adding that “you have to lower your standards and then you destroy your reputation that took 40, 50 years to build up as a quality destination for families and couples alike.”

Instead, he said, the focus is on countering uncertainty and correcting what he described as a gap between perception and reality.

According to Angelides, efforts are being stepped up both online and offline, while journalists, editors, travel agents and tour operators are being invited to Cyprus so they can see conditions on the ground for themselves and help restore confidence in the destination.

He said the aim is to show that Cyprus remains safe for visitors, despite the nervousness caused by regional developments and what he referred to as “that small incident that happened on the 2nd of March.”

Angelides said the main challenge was not so much the reality on the ground as the way Cyprus was being perceived abroad.

“It’s the perceived risk versus the reality on the ground,” he said.

At the same time, Angelides said it was encouraging that airlines and tour operators had so far maintained seat capacity and their scheduled programmes, something he said was helping support both the industry and the wider booking pipeline.