Here’s more evidence that hotel rates may be about to fall off a proverbial cliff. Earlier this week, experts predicted some modest rate declines. But after Wall Street’s meltdown, it became a more significant downturn. Now there’s evidence that the trajectory was already set long ago.
Here are average daily room rates from last summer, according to our friends at Travelocity.
Now, the idea with any business is to increase rates over time. But that’s not what happened last summer …
Rates in these cities were off by anywhere from $2 to $5 a night. That’s the wrong direction.
Let’s go to the tape. Here’s Travelocity’s Genevieve Shaw Brown:
Hotel average daily rates in many cities have remained relatively flat year-over-year and in some instances decreased. Travelers are able to find value in their hotel stays and keep a vacation within reach. The hotel stay is typically the most expensive part of any trip, so a discount on your room can offset other costs, whether it’s an increase in airfare or higher gas prices.
From where I’m sitting, I see hotel rates heading south in a pretty dramatic way.
For the sake of the hardworking men and women in the lodging industry, I hope I’m wrong. For the sake of the travelers who have been priced out of an affordable vacation for the last four years, I hope I’m right.
