Sales up 15 percent on 2005Bahrain is expecting a sell out crowd for its first season opening Grand Prix of the season next month.
With Australia taking a break from the calendar`s first slot due to the Commonwealth Games, Bahrain has been promoted from round three to round one for 2006.
A spokeswoman for the Sakhir circuit said she did not know exact figures, but expected higher numbers than last year.
"If we compare this year`s sales to last year`s six weeks before the event," she told the TradeArabia publication, "there is a 15 percent increase."
Hoteliers in the area, however, have come under fire for exploiting the accommodation shortage by raising normal room fees by between 45 and 75 percent.
One single and double room for radio journalists for three nights, according to TradeArabia, was costing them about $1400.
The circuit`s hotel manager, however, defended the rate rises.
"The (hotel fee) structure used in Bahrain is an international one," said Abdulrahman Qarata.
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