The pace of new bookings is slowing at North American hotels as the industry heads into the typically strong spring travel-reservation season, according to a new TravelClick study—the March 2016 North American Hospitality Review, which looks at group sales commitments and individual reservations in 25 major North American markets booked by March 1, 2016, for stays from March 2016 to February 2017.
While new bookings are up at the start of the spring season, with 17 of the top 25 North American markets showing “committed occupancy”* growth compared to last month, the pace of those bookings is relatively flat. New commitments that have been added over the last month are down -0.2 percent. These numbers indicate a disjointed story for hoteliers as new booking pace is slowing going into the normally strong spring travel reservation season.
For the next 12 months (March 2016 – February 2017), transient bookings are up 0.8 percent year-over-year, and ADR for this segment is up 2.4 percent. When broken down further, the transient leisure (discount, qualified and wholesale) segment is showing occupancy gains of 2.6 percent, with ADR gains of 2.6 percent. The transient business (negotiated and retail) segment is down -1.8 percent, but ADR is up 2.9 percent. Lastly, group bookings are up 5.0 percent in committed room nights over the same time last year, and ADR is up 3.4 percent.
First Quarter 2016
| Segment | ADR | Reserved Occupancy | RevPar |
|---|---|---|---|
| All Travel Segments | 2.60% | -0.60% | 1.9 |
| Group Only | 3.70% | -2.10% | 1.5 |
| Transient Only | 2.20% | -0.10% | 2.1 |
| (Business+Leisure) | |||
| Transient Business | 2.40% | -2.80% | -0.4 |
| Transient Leisure | 2.90% | 3.00% | 5.9 |
| Source: Travelzoo March 2016 North American Hospitality Review |
Second Quarter 2016
| Segment | ADR | Committed Occpuancy |
|---|---|---|
| All Travel Segments | 2.5 | 3.2 |
| Group Only | 3.9 | 4.4 |
| Transient Only | 2 | 0.3 |
| (Business+Leisure) | ||
| Transient Business | 1.8 | -2.4 |
| Transient Leisure | 2.2 | 0.8 |
| * Committed Occupancy(Transient rooms received + group rooms committed)/capacity | ||
| The 1st quarter combines historical data (Jan. and Feb.) and forward-looking data (Mar.) | ||
| Source: Travelzoo March 2016 North American Hospitality Review |
