Hotels make a killing with big sports events
Hoteliers in host markets have seen booking increases of as much as 200% and rates doubling ahead of the US Super Bowl, Winter Olympics and the FIFA World Cup.
Pegasus Solutions conducted a comparison of net reservations made in 2014 and 2013 for the same January 20 cut-off for same day-of-week arrivals in each region.
“We reviewed bookings made through online sites for destinations that would see leisure travel for the Super Bowl in the US, Winter Olympics in Russia, and FIFA World Cup in Brazil,” said David Millili, CEO of Pegasus Solutions.
“Some booking increases were registered in destinations like Sao Paulo, which are not traditionally considered major leisure hubs.
"Other booking growth was not as evident because many hoteliers strategically limited room inventory allocated to third party sites to drive more bookings through the brand site.
"Hotels that were prepared with a website designed to sell to a global audience will have benefitted greatly from this approach,” Millili said.
New York City will host most of those attending the National Football League’s Super Bowl on Sunday.
Rates for arrivals on Wednesday, January 29 have climbed by +41% over 2013. This rises to +77% the following day, reaching a high of +97% that Friday, and +83% on Saturday, February 1.
Booked rates for the day of the event remain elevated by +45%, but will begin to taper as Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos fans return home.
Rates in Russia during the Winter Olympics, which run February 7 to 23, were less consistently inflated. To overcome the potentially prohibitive cost of attending that includes international travel and event admission, hoteliers have worked to keep rates from being a deterrent, with many also offering inventory in travel packages.
Sporadic spikes in rates compared to same day last year did occur on select dates, peaking mid-way through the Games.
FIFA’s World Cup from June 12 through July 13 at various venues in Brazil, has boosted rates in already popular leisure destination Rio de Janeiro.
Sao Paulo, however, has seen reservations jump by more than 200% from what would normally be booked this far in advance for stays during this time period.
Rates have been comparable to prior year, which may be due to the five-month booking lead time. One day, July 8, shows an uptick in rates equal to double what would be expected otherwise.
Ian Jarrett
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