Most travel buyers expect their companies in 2013 to
maintain or increase hotel volume, and most are bracing for slight rate
increases on those room nights, according to an AirPlus International survey of
133 corporate travel buyers conducted in late August and early September.
Of the buyers surveyed, 45 percent indicated their companies'
hotel volume in 2013 would be higher than it is this year, and about the same
percentage said it would stay the same. A little more than 10 percent indicated
that volume would decrease.
Just over half of respondent buyers indicated they expected
their negotiated 2013 hotel rates to increase by 5 percent or less from this
year's levels, and about a quarter said they expected such rates to hold steady.
Less than 10 percent of the respondents indicated they expected those rates to
decrease, and more than 13 percent said rates would increase by more than 5
percent.
Rate increases would pose an additional challenge for most buyers
surveyed, as about 53 percent expect to have the same hotel program budget in
2013 as in 2012. About 37 percent expect those budgets to increase, and about
10 percent projected a decrease.
Even so, a third of buyers in the survey indicated they plan
to retain preferred hotel suppliers, even in the case of a rate increase. About
29 percent said they would switch suppliers if necessary to achieve lower rates.