U.S. Hotels Enjoying Daily Rate Increases, Says STR

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According to a new report from STR, the U.S. hotel industry's average daily rate reported its fifth consecutive increase of more than 3 percent during the week of March 13th.

In year-over-year comparisons, occupancy increased 5.1 percent to 64.6 percent, ADR was up 3.7 percent to US$102.23, and revenue per available room finished the week up 9.0 percent to US$66.01.

"The industry's performance seems to be strengthening after Valentine's Day and heading into Spring Break season," said Steve Hood, VP of research at STR. "Last week was the fifth straight week with ADR increases in the 3-percent range. It was also the first full week since November with a running 28-day RevPAR percent change in the double digits."

Among the Top 25 Markets, Norfolk-Virginia Beach, Virginia, achieved the largest occupancy increase, rising 12.5 percent to 52.1 percent, followed by Tampa-St. Petersburg, Florida (+12.4 percent to 88.9 percent), and Miami-Hialeah, Florida (+12.2 percent to 89.7 percent). New York, New York, reported the largest occupancy decrease, falling 5.3 percent to 83.6 percent, followed by Chicago, Illinois, with a 3.0-percent decrease to 60.6 percent.

Two markets posted double-digit ADR increases: San Francisco/San Mateo, California (+19.6 percent to US$144.70), and Miami-Hialeah (+12.0 percent to US$191.75). Atlanta, Georgia, fell 5.8 percent in ADR to US$88.68, reporting the largest decrease in that metric, followed by Denver, Colorado, with a 3.4-percent decrease to US$92.12.

Five markets experienced RevPAR increases of more than 15 percent: San Francisco/San Mateo (+32.5 percent to US$112.54); Miami-Hialeah (+25.7 percent to US$171.98); Tampa-St. Petersburg (+20.0 percent to US$104.13); New Orleans, Louisiana (+18.7 percent to US$110.99); and Houston, Texas (+17.6 percent to US$63.74). Chicago dropped 4.1 percent in RevPAR to US$61.83, reporting the only decrease in that metric.

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