Guest houses recorded the highest room occupancy rate of 47.1% in January 2025, surpassing hotels, which followed at 41.8%, according to the latest report from the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA).
Tented camps and tented lodges secured third and fourth positions with occupancy rates of 40.5% and 39.0%, respectively, while guest farms reported the lowest occupancy rate at 36.9%.
The NSA’s Rooms & Beds Occupancy January 2025 report also indicated that the Room Occupancy Rate Index declined by 15.9% on a monthly basis, showing a recovery from the 23.9% drop registered in the previous month. On an annual basis, the index contracted by 0.2%.
“The monthly decline was driven by an overall decline in room occupancy across hospitality establishments in all regions, except for hotel pensions, which recorded a positive figure,” the NSA report stated.
The coastal region experienced the sharpest decline at 21.1%, followed by the southern region with a 19.0% drop. The central and northern regions saw declines of 16.3% and 9.2%, respectively.
During the reporting period, a total of 52,948 rooms were available nationwide, with 19,443 (36.7%) sold. This marked a reduction compared to December 2024, when 61,430 rooms were available, with 26,833 (43.7%) sold. In comparison, January 2024 recorded 46,341 available rooms, with 17,049 (36.8%) being sold.
“In the period under review, the northern region saw the highest number of rooms available, amounting to 21,576 rooms with 7,248 rooms sold, leading to a surplus of 14,328 rooms,” the report highlighted.
The southern region followed, offering 17,546 rooms, of which 6,240 were sold, leaving a surplus of 11,306 rooms. The central region recorded 8,494 rooms available and 3,160 sold, leading to a surplus of 5,334 rooms. The coastal region had the lowest availability, with 5,332 rooms, of which 2,795 were sold, leaving a surplus of 2,537 rooms.
Meanwhile, a total of 104,067 beds were available nationwide in January 2025, with 34,514 (33.2%) sold. This reflected a contraction compared to the previous month, which had 124,056 beds available, with 49,655 (40.0%) sold. In January 2024, 94,375 beds were available, with 30,402 (32.2%) sold.
“Guest houses experienced the highest bed occupancy rate of 40.6% in January 2025, followed by tented lodges with 36.2% and tented camps with 34.9%,” the report stated.
Hotels and guest farms ranked fourth and fifth, with bed occupancy rates of 33.6% and 29.6%, respectively.
