Portugal's hotel industry has moderate expectations for the summer with few reservations above 50%

The Portuguese Hotel Association has just released the results of the survey “Easter Balance and Summer Outlook 2025”. Despite the bad weather, the occupancy rate (ORR) over the Easter weekend stood at 75 percent, with a drop in some regions.

Forecasts for the summer are generally positive, but still marked by some uncertainty, with only a third of the tourist establishments surveyed reporting more than half of their capacity already reserved.

Another highlight of the survey shows that the hotel's own website has gained ground among hotel booking channels.

42 percent of respondents believe that TO will be better or much better than last summer; 63 percent estimate an increase in the average price (ARR); 67 percent expect an increase in total revenues;

28 percent expect an increase in the average stay, while 67 percent expect it to remain the same.

Unsurprisingly, June is, up until the survey closing date, the month with the highest number of “on the books” reservations, between 50 percent and 89 percent.

July and September show more moderate booking levels, between 20 percent and 69 percent, while August – traditionally the strongest month of the summer – records more contained booking rates, between 20 percent and 49 percent.

In the Algarve, June and July have already exceeded 70 percent of reservations, with only September being the month with the lowest reservations, below 50 percent.

The Algarve, the Azores and Madeira appear as the regions with the best performance in terms of hotel bookings for the summer, above the national average, although there are disparities within the territories themselves.

When asked how they think TO will be this summer, compared to last year's summer, 43 percent of respondents think it will be "Better" or "Much Better", 42 percent think it will be "The Same" and 15 percent indicate it will be "Worse".

As for ARR, 63 percent think it will be “Better” or “Much Better,” 27 percent think it will be “The Same,” and 10 percent think it will be “Worse.”

Regarding Total Revenues, 67 percent think they will be “Better” or “Much Better”, 21 percent think they will be “The Same” and 12 percent think they will be “Worse”.

As for issuing markets, the national market continues to be mentioned by 76 percent of respondents as being among the three main markets.

The United Kingdom was mentioned by 55 percent of respondents and the USA by 45 percent. In regional terms, Madeira stands out, where the United Kingdom appears in the Top 3 for the largest number of respondents (97 percent). In 2024, the most mentioned market was Germany, mentioned by 95 percent of respondents.

In the Algarve, Spain is mentioned by fewer respondents this year (15 percent) than last year (55 percent), with a reduction also visible in the North region, with 62 percent of respondents mentioning this market in 2025, while it was mentioned by 86 percent in 2024.

Booking remains the main booking channel in the national tally, mentioned by 95 percent of the hoteliers surveyed, followed by their own websites , for 87 percent, and Expedia, for 39 percent.

These figures, however, vary significantly by region. The website itself is the main booking channel in the Azores (93 percent), Alentejo (91 percent) and Setúbal Peninsula (100 percent).

Expedia is also gaining ground in Greater Lisbon, mentioned by 69 percent of respondents, and in the North Region, mentioned by 46 percent. It is also worth highlighting the importance of travel agencies in the autonomous regions (mentioned among the three main channels by 94 percent of respondents in Madeira and 64 percent in the Azores), and also in the Setúbal Peninsula (50 percent) and the West and Tagus Valley (38 percent).

The occupancy rate (TO) over the Easter weekend reached 75 percent, with significant growth in Madeira (85 percent), Alentejo (77 percent) and Algarve (75 percent).

However, the TO found in other regions already shows signs of possible containment, when compared with the results of the 2024 survey, as is the case of the West and Tagus Valley, which fell to 59 percent, compared to the 64 percent recorded in the same 2024 survey.

In line with this decline, the region's ARR fell by 12 percent, standing at 100 euros. The North and Central regions also saw falls in TO, both of -2 pp, standing at 70 percent and 65 percent, respectively.

The national Average Price per Room (ARR) was 151 euros, up five percent compared to 2024, but with large regional variations. Greater Lisbon led with 180 euros, followed by Madeira (169 euros) and Alentejo (156 euros). In RevPAR, Madeira and Lisbon recorded the highest value: 144 euros.

When we look at the results of the Easter weekend revenues compared to the same period last year, 62 percent of respondents rated the revenues as “Better”. This rating is in line with the +13 percent growth in Total Revenues recorded in April 2025 compared to the same month in 2024 ( INE data).

However, some of the regions surveyed reported lower income, such as the Setúbal Peninsula, with 38 percent of respondents classifying them as “Worse”, and the West and Tagus Valley, with 20 percent giving this classification.

Photo: Helio Ramos / RTA.