MADRID, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Spain's Melia Hotels reduced its net loss in the third quarter from the preceding three months and said the worst of the crisis was behind it after the coronavirus pandemic had nearly stifled global tourism.

The hotel chain posted on Thursday a net loss of 114.5 million euros ($135.16 million) for the July-September period after a 279 million loss in April-June. A year ago, it reported a net profit of 62.2 million euros.

Revenue plunged 79% to 111.1 million euros from a year ago, the company said.

"We trust that the worst of the crisis is now behind us," Melia said, while acknowledging that the fourth quarter would be challenging due to travel restrictions to prevent fresh outbreaks. ($1 = 0.8472 euros) (Reporting by Nathan Allen, editing by Andrei Khalip)