72 percent fewer guests in tourist accommodations

Recreational accommodations - e.g. hotels, holiday parks, camping sites and group accommodations - were severely affected by the coronavirus crisis after a record year in 2019. In April 2020, the entire sector even came to an almost complete standstill with 95 percent fewer guests than in April 2019. May and June brought some recovery, but even in June tourist accommodations received only half as many guests as in June 2019. The number of overnight stays presented a picture similar to the number of guests.

Number of hotel guests down by over three-quarters

In Q2 2020, guest rates at hotels and similar accommodations fell by 76 percent relative to the same period last year. This expressed itself in a rising number of bankruptcies. In recent years, the second quarter would generally show fewer than 5 hotel bankruptcies, but in Q2 2020 the number stood at 19.
Holiday parks and camping sites were hit less severely but also suffered from substantially lower guest rates: by -63 and -60 percent, respectively. The actual start of their season is the May holiday period (end of April).

Noord-Holland and especially Amsterdam seriously affected

Noord-Holland and Amsterdam, key tourist destinations in the Netherlands, were hit by a drop in the number of guests amounting to 83 percent and 92 percent respectively due to the coronavirus crisis. At 53 percent, the decline was relatively lowest in Fryslân. Recreational accommodations in the cities were hit more severely than those in rural areas.

Foreign visitors staying away in particular

The decline in guest rates has come primarily from foreign visitors: by 87 percent relative to Q2 2019. Global travel restrictions mainly affected the number of visitors from far away and/or arriving by air. For example, there were hardly any visitors from outside of Europe (declines ranging from 96 to 98 percent). The majority of guests were from Germany and Belgium, although even these numbers were down by 74 and 87 percent respectively. The number of domestic hotel guests showed the smallest decline: 60 percent.