Average hotel bookings across Cyprus for July and August are running at around 85%, noticeably lower than last year, Christos Angelidis, General Director of the Cyprus Hotel Association (PASYXE), told CNA on Monday, noting that higher energy costs stemming from regional conflicts are having a visible impact on the industry.
Haris Papacharalambous, President of the Cyprus Association of Travel and Tourist Agents (ACTTA), told CNA that every time conflicts in the region flare up again, the effect on tourism "shows immediately," estimating that the year overall will close 12-14% below last year, which was a record year for Cyprus' tourism industry.
Bookings improving, but questions remain for autumn
Asked about how bookings have developed this summer, Angelidis said the pace of bookings has been improving. "There's increased demand for long weekends, especially from last-minute bookings, from countries in the wider region and from the local market," he said, adding that this was improving the overall picture.
He noted, however, that a question mark still hangs over autumn, adding that the industry always hopes for a recovery and remains on alert to respond as needed. He said recent developments pushing up energy costs and keeping airfares expensive remain a concern for Cyprus that the industry needs to keep in mind.
Arrivals from key markets have improved, he said, though there remains considerable ground to make up compared with last year. "We're optimistic. We're continuing our efforts collectively and in an organised way, as a private sector and as an industry," he said.
Asked about occupancy levels for July and August specifically, Angelidis said the nationwide average currently stands at around 85%. He said the industry hopes this will hold and rise further, noting that compared with last year, a record year in which August occupancy reached as high as 97%, this year's figures remain 10-15% lower.
On the prospect of growing year-round tourism, particularly bookings for autumn, winter and early spring, Angelidis said the industry's main hope is to build on where it left off last year, with efforts focused on improving the five-month period from November 2026 to April 2027, which he said would make the real difference. He added that any improvement in the picture over the coming months would help close the gap that opened up at the start of the season.
Despite the circumstances, he said, PASYXE's member hotels remain optimistic and are maintaining service and quality standards, in order to protect the reputation the industry has built over the years.
Nearly every market down, except Israel
For his part, the ACTTA president said the sector is currently behind, though not by a large margin, compared with the equivalent months last year, noting that the Famagusta free area has been hit hardest.
"Almost every market is down compared with last year, with the exception of Israel, which saw a 170% increase in June compared with last year," Papacharalambous said, since the war between Israel and Iran had broken out in June 2025.
Asked what the biggest challenge facing the association had been during this year's campaign, he said it was the issue of perception, and the way Cyprus had become associated with the state of war following the drone that fell on the British Bases in March, as well as how the story had been handled by traditional and social media.
He estimated that this year's overall picture will remain slightly weaker, since it depends directly on how events unfold. Asked whether the lifting of the US-Iran ceasefire had had an impact, he said the effect "shows immediately," within a day, though not to a large degree.
He said he expects overnight stays across Cyprus for the year as a whole to finish around 12-14% below last year.
Source: CNA
