The number of overnight stays in the city increased to 2016 in 554.000, an increase of 16%. The overnight stays in the city have shown a structural increase since 2003, but have never exceeded half a million. In the province of Groningen, Marketing Groningen sees that more people are coming who stay less long, resulting in a slight decrease in the number of overnight stays. Nationally, the number of overnight stays rose by 2,6%. This is evident from the figures from the municipality of Groningen and the CBS.
Overnight stays in Groningen city have risen sharply
The city of Groningen has seen a sharp increase in overnight stays. In 2015, there were still 479.000 overnight stays in Groningen, in 2016 there were 554.000 (source: Municipality of Groningen). Both hotel and camping nights increased significantly (16,2% and 9,4% respectively). But there was also a slight increase of about 2% at the marinas and the Bed & Breakfasts. In 2016 there were several major events such as the David Bowie is exhibition in the Groninger Museum and DelfSail. Another explanation for the increase is the opening of the new hotel The Student Hotel in 2016. “We are pleased with this positive trend and we expect this increase to be structural.” says Hans Poll, Director of Marketing Groningen.
The number of guests in the province of Groningen is increasing, but they stay less long
Figures from Statistics Netherlands show that the province of Groningen achieved an increase in the number of guests by 2016 to 14.000 in 667.000. However, the number of overnight stays decreased by 3% to 1.454.000. This means that more people have spent the night in the province, but that they stay less long.
“If we look at the type of accommodation, we see that the number of hotel stays increased by 11%, but that the campsites and bungalow parks are having a harder time. In our new tourist campaign 'There is nothing like Groningen', which we started at the beginning of this year, we therefore pay a lot of attention to the accommodation types that are currently having a hard time, so that they can also benefit from the tourist growth.” explains Hans Poll. Bed & breakfasts, a type of accommodation that is well represented in Groningen, are not included in the CBS statistics.
