Ukraine has Enough Hotel Rooms to Host Euro 2012 Guests

KYIV, Ukraine, February 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

European football fans will have no problems finding accommodation during EURO 2012, said the Vice Prime Minister, Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine Borys Kolesnikov. He explained that the reported shortage of places at hotels in Ukrainian host cities would be compensated by beds at health resorts and dormitories.

In his interview with The Independent Borys Kolesnikov informed that reasonably priced accommodation was still available - despite the common opinion that accommodation packages in Ukraine may reach four figures. "There is enough student accommodation [though]," said the minister.

It was reported recently that over 60,000 beds are available in Ukrainian EURO 2012 cities, and only 20 percent of accommodation had been booked. Travel agencies are gradually adjusting their offers to the needs of the football fans, increasing the number of affordable, short term packages, said the director of the Local Organizing Committee for EURO 2012 in Ukraine Markian Lubkivskyi.

The organizers of EURO 2012 in Ukraine claim all four host cities will be able to accommodate the football fans in rooms from basic to 5*, reports Information centre Ukraine-2012. It is expected that Ukraine will open 49 new hotels in EURO 2012 host cities early in 2012.

Understandably, Kyiv not only has extra rooms but its hotels are holding workshops and trainings for personnel in order to prepare for unprecedented amount of guests. Another EURO 2012 host - western Ukrainian Lviv is also reported to be completely ready. "We can assume that some 100,000 tourists will visit the city during the [EURO 2012] championship," reckoned the CEO of the Lviv Tourist Board Andriy Matselyukh. Nearly one million tourists came to Lviv in 2011 and 900,000 in 2010.

Being a less popular tourist destination, eastern Ukraine relies on simpler lodging - dormitories and health resorts. UEFA struggled to secure the 6,000 rooms it requires in the Donetsk area; just days ago Kharkiv fulfilled UEFA requirements for accommodation. Talking to The Independent, Borys Kolesnikov said: "Donetsk is an industrial centre. It's impossible to have such a quantity of hotels like you have in London." Nonetheless, fans will have a chance to shop for top notch accommodation in these cities as well.

EURO 2012 organizers say prices for rooms in Ukraine will vary between EUR 10 and 192.