in-cyprus 2 September 2019 - Edited by Annie Charalambous
The hotel industry’s structure worldwide has changed dramatically over the recent past years and Cyprus is no exception.
The quantity and quality of new accommodation units has changed with entrepreneurs realising that the promotion of sun and sea only is not enough to attract more and more tourists. And that the product on offer has to be of higher quality is higher quality tourists are to be attracted to the Mediterranean island.
The state of play today is that Cyprus has a large number of medium- quality tourist accommodation (2 and 3 star hotels and class b apartments), but the number of luxury hotel units is quite small.
Spanish experts who recently drafted an overall tourism strategy on behalf of Cyprus have made several recommendations. One of them is that new types of accommodation should be provided to meet demands of the new market in the tourism sector.
The new types include Inns, Guest Houses, Bed & Breakfast (small, family-run accommodation units which also offer food, at least breakfast), Special lodging (special units in accordance with market trends eg. mansions, luxury villas, luxury agrotourism, luxury caravans etc.), Glamping (Combination of camps, glamour and luxury).
Today’s picture in Cyprus
There are hotel construction sites all over the island with coastal cities following the familiar pattern (hotels and tourist apartments) since their location provides them with an advantage and they do not have to alter their product that much. As a matter of fact, there is a need now for five-star hotels in coastal cities and businessmen are grabbing that opportunity.
However, tourism entrepreneurs in areas that do not have the mass tourism of Protaras and Ayia Napa are getting into other types of accommodation. Such as boutique hotels and mansions turned into small hotels. The finesse of old mansions attracts tourists who want to stay in the heart of a city and also enjoy the warmth of an old house.
Limassol has already developed this new trend and Nicosia is getting there, taking advantage of its many neoclassical houses.
Mountain resorts are also making a strong comeback. The picturesque villages of Lofou and Kalopanayiotis have succeeded in the development of wineries which, combined with agrotourism accomodation, have managed to bring back life and enjoy a substantial piece of the island’s tourism pie.
Wellness tourism has also become ‘in’ and many accommodations in Cyprus have incorporated spas.
In addition, luxury campsites which are the tourism industry’s new trend have also made their presence in Cyprus. “Glamping” (glamorous camping) is a new global trend as it offers amenities to those who want the camping experience in nature but do not want to rough it out.
