The Tourism Association of Koh Samui forecasts the average hotel room rate on the island will remain stable until 2017 due to fierce competition.

Rates have increased by 5% since last year, president Seni Puwasetthavorn said. Many hotels must propose their contract rates for 2016-17 to clients by year-end. “Room rates will not increase, but many hotels will offer special discounts to maintain clients,” Seni said.

He said the number of illegal rooms on Koh Samui had doubled to 5,000 this year. They include serviced apartments, weekend houses owned by foreigners, hotels and resorts. C9 Hotelworks research shows 766 hotel rooms are under construction on the island, with 185 entering the market next year and the rest in 2017.

By 2018, Koh Samui will have 18,749 rooms at registered establishments, up by 4% from this year. Seni Puwasetthavorn expects tourist arrivals on Koh Samui will grow by 10% to 1.6 million this year, while the average hotel occupancy rate will fall 15 percentage points to 50%. Hotels with strong sales and marketing networks can run at 70-80% occupancy this year (Bangkok Post)