Germany's hospitality industry barely grew in 2023, new figures show

The hospitality industry in Germany grew more slowly in 2023 than initially estimated last month, new figures released on Tuesday showed.

Price-adjusted sales rose by only 1.1% in 2023 compared to the previous year, the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) reported. Compared to the pre-pandemic year of 2019, sales were 11.3% lower.

In an initial estimate for 2023 in mid-January, the authority had assumed price-adjusted sales growth of 2.6% year-on-year.

In non-price-adjusted terms, hoteliers and restaurateurs had 8.5% higher revenues than in the previous year. The first estimate was 9.6%.

Hotels and restaurants owed the barely positive result for 2023 primarily to the particularly strong price-adjusted growth at the beginning of the year. As the year progressed, higher prices for food, staff and energy weighed the industry down, Destatis said.