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Cyprus Hotel Bookings Decline As Middle East Tensions Weigh On Demand

Booking Declines Signal Looming Slowdown

Hoteliers in Ayia Napa, Protaras and Larnaca are reporting a slowdown in bookings ahead of the new tourism season, as tensions in the Middle East continue to affect travel demand. Operators say cancellations have increased in recent weeks, particularly in key resort areas.

Shifting Reservation Dynamics

Recent data show that most cancellations are concentrated in April and May, just as hotels prepare to reopen for the season. Panayiotis Constantinou, president of the Famagusta Hoteliers Association (Pasyxe), said existing summer bookings remain largely stable. However, the lack of new reservations from key European markets is becoming a growing concern.

Calls For Targeted State Intervention

Industry representatives are calling for additional government support, including an extension of unemployment benefits for hotel staff affected by delayed demand. Such measures are seen as necessary as hotels reopen with lower-than-expected occupancy levels.

Challenges In Larnaca And Broader Mediterranean Trends

In Larnaca, cancellations have reached around 35%, while new bookings are estimated at roughly one-tenth of last year’s levels, according to Marios Polyviou, president of the local hoteliers’ association. The district has been particularly affected due to its reliance on visitors from Israel, traditionally one of its main markets.

Similar trends are being observed across other Mediterranean destinations, including Spain, Greece and Turkey, as travellers remain cautious. At the same time, there are early signs of potential recovery. Flights from Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport may resume by late April, which could support a gradual return in bookings.

payabl. Launches Click To Pay With Visa To Help Merchants Improve Checkout Conversion And Reduce Fraud

payabl. has launched Click to Pay with Visa, a new card payment experience designed to help merchants reduce checkout friction, improve authorisation rates, and deliver a faster, more secure online payment journey.

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Click to Pay replaces manual card number entry with a token-based checkout experience. Once a customer’s card is enrolled, they can complete purchases in just a few clicks, without re-entering card details. The result is a faster checkout that mirrors the ease of contactless payments in-store, while maintaining strong security standards.

For merchants, the impact is measurable. According to Visa, Click to Pay can deliver up to a 11% uplift in authorisation rates compared to manual card entry, alongside significant fraud reduction through network tokenisation. Faster checkout also helps reduce cart abandonment, particularly on mobile, where typing card details remains a major source of friction.

“With online checkout, every extra step costs conversion,” said Breno Oliveira, Chief Product Officer at payabl. “Visa Click to Pay removes one of the biggest points of friction at the moment of purchase. It helps merchants approve more legitimate transactions, reduce fraud exposure, and give customers the experience they already expect.” 

Visa Click to Pay is available through payabl. checkout, enabling merchants to activate the service without additional integration complexity. The solution works across devices and supports existing security flows, including 3D Secure where required.

“Consumers have come to expect a highly personalised, intuitive, and seamless payment experience, whether they’re buying a coffee, shopping online, or applying for a loan. Visa Click to Pay aims to meet these expectations by removing the need to manually enter card details, thus enhancing both security and the consumer experience in online card payments. With the support of network tokens, Visa Click to Pay enabled a more secure and smoother transaction process, available in many countries around the world. According to European VisaNet data, Visa Click to Pay may allow a 4.5% uplift in merchant sales, meaning a possible annual increase of €51 bn in SMB eCommerce sales in the UK and EU,” said Michael Ioannides, Country Manager, Visa Cyprus.

The launch forms part of payabl.’s broader focus on checkout optimisation, helping merchants improve conversion, approvals, and payment reliability at scale. Click to Pay with Visa is now live for eligible merchants across Europe. 

Checkout expectations are rising across Europe 

Insights from payabl.’s State of European Checkouts report underline why frictionless checkout experiences are becoming a commercial priority. The research found that consumers cite speed (46%), convenience (44%), and security (41%) as the top reasons for choosing a payment method. More than half of consumers (53%) are open to switching to newer payment methods and nearly half (48%) are open to one-click checkouts, provided the solution is backed by a trusted brand such as Visa.

“Checkout is no longer just the final step of a transaction,” said Oliveira. “It is a critical part of the overall customer experience. Our research shows that 43% of European consumers will not return to a site after a poor checkout experience. For merchants across the UK and Europe, that translates directly into lost customers and lost revenue.”

The launch forms part of payabl.’s broader focus on checkout optimisation, helping merchants improve conversion, approvals, and payment reliability at scale. Click to Pay with Visa is now live for eligible merchants across Europe.

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