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BY THE FOURTH quarter of last year, group business in 10 of the top markets in the U.S. had recovered 110 percent compared to the same time in 2019, according to the Hospitality Group and Business Performance Index from Knowland and Amadeus. The top 20 markets have achieved 100 percent of 2019 levels of occupancy and ADR, with 10 surpassing 110 percent or more. Group business reached the 110 percent health index in the fourth quarter because it used 95.5 percent of the group rooms sold in 2019, coupled with a 14.8 percent increase in ADR, according to the index. Overall growth for the year 2023 stood at 103 percent, with 92.5 percent of group rooms sold in 2019 and an accompanying average rate increase of 11.7 percent. Meetings and event business rebounded to 91.9 percent in the fourth quarter compared to 2019, with an end-of-year recovery rate of 91.2 percent. The volume of smaller groups led to stability in the market, according to Knowland. Currently, 70 percent of events have 200 attendees or less and smaller meetings, those with less than 25 attendees, saw the most growth, experiencing a 19 percent increase since 2019.

USING TECHNOLOGY TO enhance the attendee experience remains a key trend for meeting and event planners as they expect meetings volumes to rise, according to a survey. The tech trend is closely followed by a focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion and a more casual meeting atmosphere. The 2023 State of the Meetings Industry survey by group hospitality analytics firm Knowland and full-service global meetings solution company, ConferenceDirect, also revealed that staff shortages and inquiry backlogs are impacting service standards as rising costs redefine goals. The survey also pointed out that rising costs may cause planners to change their approach, including looking at new destinations. However, cost leveling, return of business travel, and budget increases will support the industry recovery. According to the survey, more than 70 percent of 2022 events had attendance at, or above, 80 percent of 2019 levels. As many as 75 percent of event planners did not expect the number of events and meetings to drop.

OCCUPANCY FOR U.S. hotels is now expected to finish the year a little down from the previous forecast by STR and Tourism Economics. However, projections for ADR and RevPAR recovery remain on track in the data firms' final forecast of the year. RevPAR is still expected to fully recover this year on a nominal basis, but not until 2025 when adjusted for inflation, according to the new forecast. The updated forecast lowered occupancy by less than a percentage point for 2022, standing now at 62.7 percent compared to the previously forecasted 63 percent released in August. "As expected, group business travel has been much more aligned with pre-pandemic patterns, specifically in October when group demand hit a pandemic-era high," said Amanda Hite, STR president. "Leisure travel has maintained its strength since our previous forecast update, and we expect these strong demand trends in both group and leisure to continue through the fourth quarter. Bottom-line performance has also persisted, with our most recent data showing strong profit margins due to lower employment levels and reduced services. The challenges around labor continue to be a concern, as high levels of hospitality unemployment and more spending on contract labor are pushing labor costs on a per-available-room basis above 2019 levels. We continue to take inflation and the likely recession into consideration, but the hotel industry has continued to show resilience through these tougher times, thus the steadiness of our updated forecast."

U.S. HOTEL REVPAR is expected to grow steadily in 2024, driven by improving group business, inbound international travel, and traditional transient business demand, according to CBRE. This follows a strong performance in 2023 that muted the new forecast in some areas. The research firm forecasted a 3 percent increase in RevPAR growth in 2024, with occupancy improving by 45 basis points and ADR increasing by 2.3 percent. It indicates ongoing recovery of the lodging industry, with RevPAR in 2024 expected to surpass 2019 levels by 13.2 percent, CBRE Hotels said in a statement. CBRE's baseline forecast expects 1.6 percent GDP growth and 2.5 percent average inflation in 2024. Given the strong correlation between GDP and RevPAR growth, the economy's strength will directly impact the lodging industry's performance, the statement said. "We expect RevPAR growth to be slower in the first quarter due to last year's strong performance, but to reach its peak in the third quarter driven by the influx of inbound international travelers during the busy summer season," said Rachael Rothman, CBRE's head of hotel research and data analytics. "Urban and airport locations should particularly benefit from group and inbound international travel, as well as the normalization of leisure travel."

NOBLE INVESTMENT GROUP in Atlanta has acquired the Hilton Garden Inn Boise Downtown. The transaction caps more than $1 billion investment over the past year, according to a statement. The 132-room hotel is near the city's leisure and business centers, which includes the Idaho State Capitol, Boise State University, Jack's Urban Meeting Place, Idaho Central Arena, and the Boise Centre, according to Noble, which is led by Mit Shah as CEO. Hotel amenities include an indoor pool, 4,098 square feet of meeting space and it is pet friendly. "The Boise market demonstrates the key macro trends we are looking for in cities which we believe will outperform as we enter a new lodging cycle," said Dustin Fisher, Noble's senior vice president. "This acquisition aligns with our strategy to acquire high-quality, well-located assets in growth markets poised to benefit from the ongoing recovery in travel."