Hotels. There are several "accommodations up to 50 euros/day"

The heat is getting worse and more and more Portuguese people are looking to travel abroad and escape the high prices in the Algarve — which are already at the same level as the Caribbean . However, the president of the Algarve Hotel and Tourist Resort Association (AHETA) argues that this “is not a more expensive destination than other destinations” and guarantees that of the approximately 4,500 accommodations available on Booking, 5% cost between 20 and 50 euros per day and 25% between 50 and 100 euros per day.

“Prices [in the hotel industry] have increased by 3 to 5%, but this business is like an airplane: if the plane is full the price goes up, if it is empty it goes down,” said Hélder Martins in statements to CNN as a way of explaining the increase in prices in the Algarve. And he guarantees that “prices are not being reflected” in a lower demand from the Portuguese.

According to the head of AHETA, if you “do a search on Booking , which is the largest supplier of tourists to the Algarve, there are currently 4,500 accommodations available for a week in August. Of these accommodations, 5% have prices between 20 and 50 euros per day. And 25% have a price between 50 and 100 euros per day”. “All you need to do is click on our computer and you can see the number of accommodations available in the Algarve at 20, 30, 40 and 50 euros per day ”, he highlights.

However, a survey conducted by Observador refutes these figures. In a survey conducted on the aforementioned website at 2pm this Saturday, using two people as a reference, there were in fact almost 4,500 accommodations (4,452) available for one week in the most popular month of the summer. But from that point on, the information stopped adding up.

According to Hélder Martins, of these 4,500 accommodations, 5% (i.e. 225) would cost between 20 and 50 euros per day, but the reality is different . At this time, on Booking, there were a total of six accommodations within this budget: one accommodation was in a caravan, three in bunk beds (of which one was in a Youth Hostel), one had a shared bathroom and was located in Mértola (about 1h30 drive from the Algarve coast), and only one accommodation had a private room (but did not provide breakfast).

And it doesn't stop there. Hélder Martins also said that 25% of the 4,500 accommodations (i.e. 1,125) cost between 50 and 100 euros per day . However, on Booking, only 161 accommodations fell within this budget (a difference of almost a thousand accommodations). Of these 161 accommodations, only six were on the beachfront. The majority of the rooms (118) were shared or had shared bathrooms, at least four were in caravans/ bungalows /chalets and 20 provided breakfast.

“ We regret — and have always regretted — that there are many Portuguese people who have smaller pockets and cannot afford [these prices],” insisted the president of AHETA. He then asked whether “it is expensive” that, “in a tourist destination that has made an effort year after year to improve, someone who comes on holiday in the height of August pays 50 euros for a room with breakfast, internet and laundry?”

The manager asked whether “should we focus on the Algarve to sell rooms for 20 euros?”, and then replied: “No”. “ We have to increase quality so that we can increase employee salaries . We have to look at the price/quality ratio and that is undoubtedly better in the Algarve. It is expensive for some Portuguese, but will the French go to the Côte d'Azur in August? Maybe they won't, they have to go in June or July… Hotels and companies are not focused on the Portuguese , they are open to the world.”