July Travel News for Hotels and Amtrak

Hotels

Hoteliers Keep Adding Rooms
Despite an uncertain economic recovery, hoteliers are building new hotels, with roughly 432,000 new rooms coming online globally, according to a report from the MKG Group.

Breaking it down regionally, that's adds up to170, 000 new rooms in North America and 138,000 in Europe, an increase of 3.1 percent and 2.2 percent, respectively.

Asia-Pacific is adding 98,000 rooms, a growth of only 1.9 percent. Other regions also show development resilience during the global economic challenge, with Latin America registering 63,600 new rooms (+4.8%), Middle East and Africa 52,700 (+4.2%). (Source: MKG press release).

Hotel Industry Leading Indicator Is Up for Fourth Month in a Row
The U.S. Hotel Industry Leading indicator, or HIL, went up 1.5 percent during May for the fourth consecutive month. The HIL usually leads the industry's business activity four to five months in advance. The latest increase brought the index to a reading of 113.5.

The index was set to equal 100 in 2000. Eight major indicators were up, including weekly hours in hotels, hotel profitability, future demand for international visitors, housing activity and the National Vacation Barometer. Only one major component was down-tightness in the labor market. (Source: HIL press release).

Rail and Car Rental

Amtrak to Expand Free wifi
Amtrak's three-month trial of free wifi was so successful that Amtrak is making it standard on all Acela trains running between Washington, D.C., and Boston.

It's planning to offer Wi Fi on its fleet nationwide, once it gets funding. This will begin this fall on Amtrak Routes in California, with Northeast regional service. (Source: Amtrak press release).

Rebounding Business Travel

Demand for business travel is on the upswing, according to data from American Express Business Travel, which tracks corporate travel spending.

• Business travelers are beginning to return to the front of the plane
• The percentage of business class tickets booked in business rose from 36 percent to 41 percent in Q1
• International airfares increased 3 percent year over year
• Domestic fares increased 6 percent
• Hotel recovery is still lagging, with international rates down .5 percent and domestic hotel rates down 5 percent

Source: American Express press release.

Lodging Forecast and Car Rental

Hotels

Demand May Be Up, But Hotel Rates Stay Low
Hotels occupancy rates are improving, according to PKF Hospitality Research, which says rates will increase 3.4 percent this year. Despite the increase, PKF expects average daily room rates to drop 1.6 percent—on average, you’ll be spending less on your rooms.

When the hotel business emerges from a recession, price increases lag growth in demand, according to PKF. However, PricewatershouseCoopers projects that room rates will start to increase in 2011, after two years of declines. (Source: PKF Hotel Horizons, PCW Lodging Forecast).

Car Rental

Hertz, Avis Continue Vying to Acquire Dollar Thrifty
Hertz and Avis, who are vying with each other to buy Dollar Thrifty, are both seeking antitrust approval for their proposed deals. Avis said that acquiring Dollar Thrifty would help it compete more effectively against Enterprise, the biggest player in the industry.

Hertz saying that it should face fewer hurdles than rival Avis, because Avis’ low-cost brand, Budget Rent A Car, competes directly with Dollar Thrifty. Hertz has also filed papers with the Securities and Exchange Commission on the matter. (Source: Hertz and Avis).

Avis Promotes Its EPA Certified Green Fleet
Avis said that its 2010 line-up is 62 percent SmartWay Certified, that is, they meet U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) environmental standards for air pollution and green house gas emission.

Nearly 100 percent of its subcompact, compact and intermediate vehicles are SmartWay certified. (Source: Avis press release).

Consumer satisfaction with hotels and car rental companies is up slightly, but down sharply for airlines, according to the quarterly Market Metrix Hospitality Index.

• Guest satisfaction with hotels is up .4 to 83.3
• Consumer satisfaction with car rental companies is up .8 to 79.2
• Passenger satisfaction is down three points to 75.7, the biggest fall since 9/11.
• Top companies were JetBlue, Enterprise, Ritz-Carlton, Hyatt Place, Red Lion and Microtel

Source: Market Metrix press release

Hotel Industry Recovery Looks Stronger

Volcano´s Impact on Hotels Balances Out
The Iceland volcano´s impact on European hotels wasn´t all bad, according to Trust International, a major hotel reservations company.

Cancellations increased to a peak on Monday, April 19, to reach more than 50 percent over normal levels. But new reservations also curved upward by more than 25 percent, suggesting travelers were postponing rather than canceling trips altogether.

Hotels witnessed increased levels of guests extending their stays and walk-in bookings as travelers booked hotels after their flights were cancelled, which helped mitigate the effect of the cancellations.

Richard Wiegmann, manager director of Trust International, said that the international hotel industry is in recovery and the outlook for the rest of the year remains promising. (Source Travel Trust press release).

U.S. Hotel Industry Recovery Looks Stronger Than expected
The U.S. hotel industry should do better than initially expected this year, with occupancy increasing by 1.9 percent to 55.8 percent, according to Smith Travel Research.

Next year, STR says occupancy will increase 1.9 percent to a still relatively low 56.8 percent and average daily rates will increase 3.5 percent. The industry won´t be back to levels of 2007 or 2008, but the industry should see 2 good years in a row, said Mark Lomanno, President of STR. (Source: STR press release).

Car & Rail

Avis Tries to Block Hertz-Thrifty Deal
A suitor may throw a wrench into Hertz´ plans to buy Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group.

Avis Budget Group told the Dollar Thrifty board that it is prepared to make a substantially higher offer, saying that Avis had several times expressed interest in acquiring Thrifty.

Avis said that the heads of the two companies had had a date to discuss the matter, but Thrifty canceled it when it announced the Hertz deal.

Acquiring Thrifty would move up Hertz by about 300 domestic corporate locations and 1,250 international franchises. (Source: Hertz and Avis press releases).

Airline Security Vs. Privacy

A recent study found Americans are willing to put up with some loss of privacy in return for greater air security.

• 93 percent said they are willing to sacrifice some privacy.
• 65 percent said they would put with full electronic scans
• 57 percent would go through biometric security checks such as iris scans or fingerprints
• 72 percent said they would provide personal data in advance

Source: Unisys Security Index press release.

Hotel Updates and a Spotlight on Airports

Global Hoteliers Say Worst is Over
The Global Hotel Market Survey shows hotel operators believe that the worst of the crisis is behind them and 2010 will be the beginning of the recovery. Six months ago, the majority of hoteliers were pessimistic, predicting that conditions would get worse.

Hoteliers in regions that are seeing stronger recoveries are the most positive. Asia and the Oceania moved from scores of -41 and -48 six months ago, to +47 and +42 now. Europe, which was the most pessimistic region at the time of the last survey, is now entering positive territory.

Hoteliers in America, which has been possibly the hardest hit region in the world over the last 18 months, now feel more positive about the coming year than in the middle of last year.

Most of the participants expect average room rates to stay more or less the same in 2010, with weak corporate and leisure group business demand, but expect a slight improvement in occupancy, driven by individual leisure travelers. (Source: Horwath HTL press release).

Hotels in the Americas Still See Rates, Occupancies Decline
Despite optimism about the future, the present remains tough for hotels in the Americas, according to the latest STR Global monthly numbers.

In January 2010, the region’s occupancy ended the month virtually flat with a 0.7-percent decrease to 45.5 percent, average daily rate (ADR) fell 6.0 percent to $96.68, and revenue per available room dropped 6.7 percent to $43.98. Boston, Mass., reported the largest occupancy increase, jumping 18.3 percent to 48.9 percent.

Two other markets reported double-digit occupancy increases:

• Miami, Fla. (up 10.6 percent to 74.6 percent)
• Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (up 10.4 percent to 76.4 percent)
• Alberta, Canada, posted the largest occupancy decrease, falling 9.9 percent to 46.9 percent.

Three markets reported double-digit ADR decreases:

• Washington, D.C. (down 27.2 percent to $132.65)
• Chicago, Ill. (down 14.5 percent to $85.99)
• San Juan, Puerto Rico (down 10.8 percent to US$190.01)

(Source: STR Global press release)

Spotlight... on Airports

Travelers continue to be dissatisfied with airports, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2010 North America Airport Satisfaction Study. Airports continue to struggle with delivering baggage promptly, providing a comfortable atmosphere and making airports easy to navigate. The study found that airports need to consistently deliver on three things:

• Clear signage
• Delivering baggage quickly and accurately
• Partnering with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to reduce security wait times.

A few airports are doing better than others. Detroit, Denver and Minneapolis St. Paul were the top three among large airports (Denver and Minneapolis/St. Paul tied for second place). Kansas City, Portland and Tampa were the top three medium sized airports. And Indianapolis, Fort Myers/Southwest Florida and Tucson were the top three small airports. (Source: J.D. Power’s press release).

Positive Signs for Business Travel

Report Sees Brighter Outlook for U.S. Hotels
A mid-December PKF Hospitality Research report says that the pace of recovery for U.S. hotels has accelerated. PKF’s Hotel Horizons cities improving occupancy, RevPAR, and demand, suggesting that that the recovery will arrive a full quarter earlier than the firm forecast in the fall.

PKF said that the decline in average daily room rates (ADR) reached its cyclical low point in the third quarter of 2009.

However, the magnitude of the ADR decline at its turning point was lower than anticipated. At the same time slight near-term improvement in Moody's Economy.com's view on employment recovery translates into an increase in the projected number of hotel rooms occupied in 2010.

PKF-HR now projects that lodging demand will post a quarterly year-over-year increase during the first quarter of 2010, thus ending eight consecutive quarters of declines. (Source: PKF press release).

Customers Happier About Hotel Service
Lodging Interactive´s monthly benchmarking report showed that hotels were headed into the holidays with improved customer satisfaction ratings.

Although mid-scale limited service and extended stay segments struggled, other categories did well. Guest ratings on facilities increased 3.9% to a 4.04 rating, with 5 being tops. Housekeeping increased 5.52% to 3.63 and satisfaction with staff increased slightly, by .26%.

The only areas of decline were a 1.69% decline in dining and a more substantial 5.64% slip in value to 4.18. (Source: Lodging Interactive press release).

Positive Signs for Business Travel

The American Express Business Travel Monitor is reported a glimmer of hope as travelers move to the front of the plane and fares rise modestly, indicating that some companies may be feeling more optimistic about the economy.

• International and domestic fares were still down year over year but up slightly quarter over quarter. Average domestic and international fares increased 2% quarter over quarter.
• Overall, hotel rates decreased both internationally and domestically, but there were rate increases among budget, economy and mid-tier hotels.
• Average domestic hotel rates decreased 2% year over year, but budget hotels increased 7% quarter over quarter. This is a good sign, reflecting a pickup in demand that is starting at the bottom.
• Averaged international booked hotel rates decreased 10% year over year.
• Car rental rates increased 5% in the third quarter of 2009 but were flat year over year.

(Source: American Express press release).

Updates For Hotels Rail & Car

Hotels

Hotel Industry Index Shows Small Gain
Economic research firm e-forecasting.com, in conjunction with Smith Travel Research, reported that the Hotel Industry’s Pulse (HIP) index edged back up in October after hitting a snag the previous month.

After stalling in September with a decline of 0.7 percent, the HIP went up 0.2 percent in October. HIP is essentially a gross domestic product measure for the hotel industry and has historically signaled turning points for the U.S. hotel business. (Source: STR press release).

Corporate Hotel Bookings Start to Increase
Hotel technology provider Pegasus Solutions reports in its October Pegasus View, which analyzes booking data from more than 90,000 hotels worldwide, that bookings and net revenue figures are climbing back to 2008 levels, with positive movement in North America.

The region’s corporate bookings jumped +3.5% in volume in October 2009 compared to October 2008, and +21% in leisure bookings volume for the same period. Pegasus projects that these numbers presage similar recoveries in other parts of the world. (Source: Pegasus press release).

Rail

Amtrak Extends Holiday Fare Sale into the New Year
Amtrak has extended discounts of up to 25 percent on its Northeast Regional service between Washington, D.C., New York and Boston through March 31. Fares are as low as $49 each way between Washington and New York or New York and Boston. Reservations must be made 14 days in advance. Seats are limited and he fares are not available Dec.17-23, 26-30, Jan 3-4, Feb. 12 and 15. (Source: Amtrak press release).

Car Rental Satisfaction

After declining for two years, customer satisfaction with car rentals has stabilized, according to J.D. Power and Associate’s latest U.S. Rental Car Satisfaction Study.

• Overall satisfaction is 733 points on a 1,000-point scale, down just one point from last year. In the previous two years it declined by 16 points and 17 points respectively.
• The biggest reason for the improved rating is that the economic crisis forced car rental companies to downsize their fleets and use cars longer. That allowed many of them to lower their rental rates.
• One problem: increasing local taxes are often offsetting those price reductions.
• Enterprise ranked highest, for the sixth year in a row, followed by National and Hertz. National improved considerably from 2008, by 15 index points.

(Source: J.D. Power press release)

WE WISH YOU A SAFE AND HAPPY HOLIDAY SEASON!

Hotel Forecast & Amtrak Improvements

Hotels

Hotel Outlook Brightens for Next Year, but Rate Expected to Decrease
The hotel forecasting firm Smith Travel Research says that next year will be better for the hotel industry, but that the industry will continue to see decreases in key metrics.

Of most interest to travelers: the average daily rate, which is expected to decline 3.4 percent to $93.16. Occupancy is also project to drop, but only slightly, by .6 percent. and RevPAR (revenue per available room) is expected to drop 4 percent to $51.29. (Source: Smith Travel Research).

Hotel Rates in Major U.S. Markets Continue to Drop
Average daily rates for hotels in the top 25 markets continue to decline, with the exception of Norfolk/Virginia Beach. The Twin Cities reported the largest ADR drop, 23 percent, to $92.15, in September, the latest month for which data is available.

New York followed with a 23 percent decline to $249. Some markets did see occupancy increases in September: Anaheim-Santa Ana, 3.4 percent to 61 percent occupancy; New York, 1 percent to 85 percent occupancy, and Tampa-St. Petersburg, 1 percent to 43.9 percent. (Source: Smith Travel Research).

Car and Rail

Amtrak Accelerates Improvements
Amtrak, using $25 million in funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, is replacing pre-World Word II electrical equipment on the Northeast Corridor.

Amtrak began to upgrade 82 outdated substations in 2002; the ARRA funding means that work that was scheduled to start in 2013 is starting now. Transformers that are as old as 75 years are being replaced with more efficient models that have less environmental impact. (Source: Amtrak press release)

The National Business Travel Association's 2010 U.S. Business Travel Forecast predicts that air and car rental costs will be flat and hotel rates will decline between two and eight percent, so businesses will travel more.

• Nearly 7 in 10 of travel managers responding to an NBTA survey expect travel spending to increase
• Fifty-six percent expect their total travel spending to increase next year, 31 percent expect it to stay flat
• Compared to the previous year, many expect to see far fewer spending cuts for conference and event travel

In this new environment, corporate travel managers expect good values from their travel suppliers. Seventy percent of buyers expect to negotiate better hotel discounts next year. More than 30 percent forecast better discounts from airlines. (Source: NBTA press release)

Hotel and Car Rental April Update

Hotel Prices Fall 12 Percent Worldwide
 Hotel prices are falling, according to Hotels.com’s Hotel Price Index. Rates for hotels in December 2008 were more than one tenth lower than they had been a year earlier and just one percent above their level in January 2004.

 
North American rates fell the most, down 12 percent in the fourth quarter of  2008.
(Source: HPI, STR Global press releases).

Omni Hotels Offers Triple Miles with American, United
 Omni Hotels is offering members of its Select Guest program the opportunity to earn unlimited triple miles in the American AAdvantage and United Mileage Plus programs.

Guest Select members also get complimentary Wi-Fi, morning beverages, pressing,  newspapers and online check-in and express checkout. To take advantage of the triple miles offer, visit SelectGuestProgram/ .
(Source: Omni Hotels).

Car Rental

Hertz Offers Summer Specials
 Hertz is offering 50 percent off weekend rentals through June 30 at participating airports in the U.S. and Puerto Rico. It’s also offering a Weekender, that includes an attractive rate, free child’s seat, no drop-off fee for one-way rentals and up to three days of Hertz NeverLost service. (Source: Hertz).

Travel Back Lash

Concerned by public perception of meetings and events as frivolous, some corporations are opting to meet in places that may look like a bargain but actually cost more.

An Association of Corporate Travel Executives survey of business managers found companies are factoring political correctness into their calculations.

1. Sixty percent would avoid a “resort” destination like Las Vegas even if the resort city were a better deal than a non-leisure destination.
2. Thirty-eight percent said public perception is now a key factor in choosing a meeting site.
3. Sixty-two percent said it would take a dramatic increase in their own business or an increase in projects that required meetings for them to increase the number of meetings and conferences they attend.

Source: Association of Corporate Travel Executives press release.

Hotel News updates for Carlson Hotels and Hilton HHonors

Travel News
How the New Age of Austerity Impacts Your Use of Hotels

You’ll probably make fewer, shorter and cheaper business trips this year and opt for basic efficiency and good service from the hotels you do stay in, according to a report by travel technology company Amadeus for the Economist Intelligence Unit.

Increased scrutiny of how business—any business, not just those using TARP
money—spends money means companies want to make business trips as productive as possible.

Gyms and restaurants count for little. Fast internet access is the most important  amenity;  efficient check-in is also key. The report predicts a “flight to trusted brands” and expectations of a certain level of good service no matter where you are in the world. (Source: Amadeus press release).

Hotels Make Loyalty Programs More Attractive
Hotel companies are enhancing their loyalty programs. Hilton HHonors has launched a new premium credit card, the Hilton HHonors Surpass Card from America Express, and enhanced the existing Hilton HHonors Card from American Express. Both cards let you earn points fast and offer generous awards.

The new Surpass card awards 9 points for every eligible $1 spent at Hilton Family hotels; complimentary standard membership in Priority Pass, which gives card members access to more than 500 airport lounges worldwide; and the ability to earn Hilton HHonors’ Diamond VIP status with an annual spend of $40,000, Hilton HHonors Card enhancements include upping bonus points (6 up from 5) for spending in an expanded list of double point categories, and special perks such as discounted and upgraded chauffeured car service.

Carlson Hotels Worldwide is offering its guests “3 for 3” – an additional 3,000 bonus Gold Points for members of its goldpoints plus loyalty program who stay three nights at any global Carlson Hotels from now through April 30. (Source: Hilton, Carlson press releases).

PKF Forecasts Declining Room Rates

Drawing on data that it’s collected since 1937, PKF Hospitality Research says that the U.S. has experienced 11 economic recessions since 1937; they lasted anywhere from six to 16 months. Some of the results were obvious, but there were some surprises, too.

As expected, during nine of the 11 downturns, occupancies fell, but that did not automatically mean average daily rates (ADR) fell. In fact, in eight of 11 recessions, they increased. For example, in the 1973-75 and 1980-82 recession, caused mainly by inflation, rates increased and hotels still were able to make some minor profit gains.

This time around, however,

1. PKF expects ADRs to fall. PKR forecasts that lodging demand will decline a cumulative 4.2 percent from 2007 through 2009
2. That, coupled with a 5.6 percent increase in supply, will produce 9.1 percent decline in occupancy to 57.2 percent,
3. The result: a 4.6 percent drop in ADR, continuing the discounting that began in the fourth quarter of 2008. Source: PKF press release

Hotels and Car Rentals

Hotel Occupancy Rates Drop, Putting Pressure on Room rates
There’s more room at the inn for U.S. travelers, with the U.S. hotel industry finishing 2009 with an occupancy rate that was 4.2 percent lower than at the end of 2007, according to hotel consulting company STR.

The industry saw a decent start to the year, but became extremely negative during the past four months. Although occupancies fell, average daily room rtes actually increased by 2.4 percent. STR says the hotel industry will stay at this level for the next few months, but will see some improvements in the second half of the year.

Only two cities saw occupancy go up—New Orleans (8.6 percent) and Houston (2.6 percent). Rates actually went up in many major cities, including Houston (9.4 percent), Denver (6.3 percent), San Francisco (5.4 percent). Ultimately, however, declining occupancies are going to put considerable pressure on hotels to lower their room rates, according to Lodging Econometrics, which covers hotels.
(Source: STR Global press, Lodging Econometrics press release).

Starwood, Hilton Add Bonuses to Loyalty Programs
Starwood is celebrating the tenth anniversary of its Starwood Preferred Guest
program and Hilton is kicking off the 22nd year of Hilton’s HHonors loyalty program. Both are offering bonuses until spring. Starwood is offering members 10,000 bonus Starpoints for every 10 nights stayed now through April 30. Hilton HHonors, whose members can earn points and miles for the same say is offering double base points at the more than 2,400 participating Hilton family hotels through April 6. Register for the program at HiltonHHonors.com/globaldoublepoints.com
(Source: Hilton, Starwood press releases).

Car Rental Avis Budget Introduces Satellite TV in cars You can keep backseat drivers occupied with ATT CruiseCast, a new satellite television service that brings news, family, sports, comedy and music channels to the back seat of your car. Starting later this year, the service will cost $8.95 per day or $62.65 per week. It stores p to there minutes of content so obstructions such as overpasses or tall buildings will not interrupt a program. Channels include MSNBC, CNN Mobile Live, the Disney Channel, Comedy Central and many others.
(Source: Avis Budget press release).

Expense Management in Tough Times

A recent American Express study of Fortune 500 companies and their expense management practices found one of the most effective strategies—and the least expensive to implement—was holding employees accountable for their corporate spending. There were three simple ways,

1. Communicate: make sure employees know what a company’s spending policies are.
2. Educate: tell employees the financial implications, for both employees and the company, for disregarding those policies.
3. Enforce: offer carrots and sticks to encourage employees to adhere to policy.

Source: American Express press release

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