Large-scale events — from the Kentucky Derby to Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour and, across the pond, the coronation of King Charles III — drove weekend demand for hotels in host markets while overall hotel performance slowed, the latest weekly data from CoStar hospitality analytics firm STR shows.
In the week of April 30-May 6, U.S. hotel occupancy was 65.2%, while outside the U.S. occupancy was 65.4%. Compared to the previous week, that marks a 1.4-percentage-point decline in the U.S. and a 5.6-percentage-point decline globally, excluding the U.S. However, both figures beat 2022 levels for the same week – by 1.2 percentage points in the U.S. and 7.1 points outside of the U.S.
Average daily rate in the U.S. was $158, an increase of $1.48 from the prior week and 6.4% above the same week last year — just ahead of the pace of inflation at 5%. With slightly weaker occupancy, U.S. revenue per available room fell $1 week over week to $103.
Outside the U.S., weekly ADR rose 18.9% year over year to $148, resulting in RevPAR of $95, an increase of more than 30% from last year.
For the fifth consecutive week, New York City led the U.S. top 25 markets in occupancy at 85.1%, up 8.4 percentage points year over year, and the city also posted the nation’s highest occupancy as it did in the previous week. Other occupancy leaders included Oahu at 80.2%, up 8.7 percentage points year over year; and Anaheim at 75.2%, a 6.1-percentage-point premium compared to the same week in 2022.
Hotel performance in overachieving markets was largely driven by events.
Buoyed by singer Taylor Swift’s three stadium concerts, Nashville occupancy for the week reached 76.5%, up 3.1 percentage points year over year, while over the weekend, occupancy was 94.2% with ADR of $318. Downtown Nashville hotels led the way with 97.3% occupancy and ADR of $571.
In Atlanta, where Swift performed in the previous week, weekend occupancy reached 81.8% with ADR of $162. Atlanta downtown, where the concert took place, had occupancy of 90.8% and ADR of $320 ADR.
Two other major events took place over the weekend in the U.S.:
- Miami hosted the Formula One race, which spilled into another week of data with the conclusion on Sunday, May 7. Occupancy in Miami on Saturday night was 89%, with ADR of $363.
- Louisville celebrated the 149th running of the Kentucky Derby and bested both Miami and Nashville with ADR of $657. Weekend occupancy was 91.7%.
Outside of the U.S., hotel performance overall slowed from the previous week, when occupancy reached a pandemic-era high amid celebration of the Eid al-Fitr and May Day holidays. Still, weekly ADR was up 18.9% compared to the same week last year to $148, resulting in a more than 30% increase in RevPAR to $95.
Among the top 10 countries based on supply, Italy had the highest occupancy for the week at 74%, followed by the United Kingdom at 72.6%. The largest year-over-year occupancy gain was in China, up 19.9 percentage points to top 61.6%.
The coronation of King Charles in London on May 6 did not have a noticeable impact on hotel performance across the United Kingdom. London ADR showed the greatest impact with a significant increase while occupancy gains were more muted.
Chris Klauda is senior director of market insights at STR. Isaac Collazo is VP of analytics at STR.
This article represents an interpretation of data collected by CoStar's hospitality analytics firm, STR. Please feel free to contact an editor with any questions or concerns. For more analysis of STR data, visit the data insights blog on STR.com.