Planning & forecasting · 7 min read
Planning for peak and off-season in tourist destinations
Revenue in resort and city-break markets can swing two to five times across the year. Plan menus, staffing, and marketing for both sides of it.
In this article:
01
Know how volatile your market is
Venues in tourist areas commonly see peak-season revenue rise 30% to 200% above baseline and off-season revenue fall 20% to 60%. The swing depends on location, concept, and whether you serve residents as well as visitors. Build your forecast from your own weekly history, then overlay known events, holidays, and flight capacity.
02
Price and position for each market
Average spend varies widely between destinations. Premium markets such as the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and France support higher check averages, while Morocco, Egypt, and Portugal tend to be volume-driven at lower spend. A menu engineered for Dubai will not travel unchanged to Marrakech, even inside the same group.
03
Staff the curve, not the average
Seasonal venues need a core team that stays all year and a flexible layer that scales with demand. Start seasonal hiring and training before the first peak weekend, not after. Cross-train core staff so a smaller off-season team can cover the whole floor without service collapsing.
04
Turn peak visitors into off-season demand
Summer visitors leave; residents and repeat travellers return. Capture consent and preferences during peak, then use the quiet months for local offers, events, and invitations to guests who live nearby. A multilingual digital menu lowers friction for international visitors when the room is busiest.
05
Review the season against the forecast
After each season, compare forecast and actual covers, spend per cover, labour percentage, and repeat visits by month. Those differences are your most valuable planning input for next year.
Put this into practice
- Build a weekly forecast from last year's covers and known events
- Set a core team size and a seasonal hiring date
- Offer the menu in your top visitor languages
- Plan three off-season campaigns for local guests
Journey context
This article supports the Plan a visit stage
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