Last year has proven to be a positive one for hotels, whose profitability increased in line with an increase in tourist arrivals and guest nights, a survey by the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association shows.

The survey, carried out by Deloitte on the MHRA's behalf and presented this afternoon, shows that all hotel sectors saw their cost base increase during 2014, but this increase was more than offset by the increase in revenue.

Tourist arrivals increased by 6.8% when compared to 2013, representing an increase of 6% in tourists using collective accommodation - including hotels - and 9.1% increase in those resorting to private accommodation.

Slightly shorter average stays meant that the total number of guest nights increased by 4.9%, representing a 2.8% increase in collective accommodation and 9.2% in private accommodation.

All hotel sectors reported an increase in occupancy during 2014.

Occupancy increased by 4 percentage points to 74.2% in 5-star hotels, by 1.9 percentage points to 77.7% in 4-star hotels and by 3.9 percentage points to 70.4% in 3-star hotels.

Hotel rates increased last year, continuing the trend that has been going on for the past five years. The average achieved rate per room increased by 6.6% to €119.40 in the 5-star sector, by 7.5% to €55.10 in the 4-star sector and by 19% to €46.20 in the 3-star sector.

Costs per available room increased by 8.5% in the 5-star sector, by 2.1% in the 4-star sector and by 5.7% in the 3-star sector, though this increase reflected, in part, increased occupancy rates.

Profitability increased nevertheless, with the most notable improvement reported in the 3-star hotel sector.

Revenue per available room increased by 9.4% in the 5-star sector, by 8.7% in the 4-star sector and by 21.8% in the 3-star sector.

This increased revenue ensured that the gross operating profit per available room increased by 17.4% to €15,045 in the 5-star sector,  by 19.8% to €8,871 in the 4-star sector and by 71.4% to €4,522 in the 3-star sector.

The latest available tourism figures issued by the National Statistics Office, covering the month of January, indicate a continuation of a positive trend, with tourist arrivals increasing by 6.8% when compared to January 2014, bed nights increasing by 5.4% and expenditure increasing by 8.8%.

In his closing address, MHRA acting president Tony Zahra welcomed the "great news" provided by the survey, and said that even better news was on its way with the upcoming reduction in energy prices for industry, noting that this would significantly affect hotels' bottom line.

But while stating that Enemalta had done a great job in reinventing itself, he stressed that significant investment was needed to upgrade what he described as a "rubbish" power grid which was responsible for intermittent power cuts. He also argued that Enemalta had to do more to ensure that all the energy supplied is paid for.

Mr Zahra then moved on to the poor state of Maltese roads, questioning why the Maltese seemed unable to build or maintain roads properly.

In his address, and in a number of occasions during the event, Mr Zahra emphasised that hoteliers had to hold on to improved room rates and not give in to any pressure to reduce them.

He observed that lowering rates directly impacted hotels' bottom lines.

The survey was presented at the Manoel Theatre, with MHRA CEO Andrew Agius Muscat stating that the association wanted to emphasise the links between tourism and culture.

Toni Attard, the director of strategy within the Malta Council for Culture and the Arts, emphasised the growth of Malta's cultural sector and stressed that cultural activities could help attract tourists.

But he noted that Malta was yet to engage tourists when it came to cultural activities, pointing out that while tourists make up an overwhelming majority of museum visitors, only few non-Maltese attend cultural events such as festivals and concerts, describing it as a missed opportunity.

He called for dialogue with the hotel industry to help make cultural events more accessible to tourists, including through information, transport and ticketing arrangements.

On his part, Mr Zahra stressed that culture distinguished Malta from other travel destinations, and noted that the Valletta International Baroque Festival attracted some 5,000 tourists to the country during January.