All agreed that it was impossible to cover the shortfall with other markets this year, it added.

Looking ahead to July, August and September, hoteliers said reservations were ‘moderate’ and moving at a slow pace, with occupancy rates clearly down on pre-coronavirus 2019, which was a record year for Cyprus tourism, but better compared to 2020 and 2021.

The survey showed that this year in particular there was a greater tendency for last minute bookings, while for the time being, bookings through tour operators were low. A number of hotels, mainly in the town of Larnaca, said they had been obliged to lower prices and make special offers.

Larnaca’s main tourism markets this year are the UK, Israel, Germany, Austria, Poland, Hungary and Romania, while there are arrivals also from Greece, mainly for professional trips.

The survey also showed that Larnaca is gaining ground as regards business travel and conference tourism as it is ideal for professional trips because of its proximity to the airport, easy access to other towns and the advantage of being compact and offering varied options to businessmen and conference attendees, Larnaca Tourism Board added.

Source: Cyprus Mail