Global Hotel Occupancy Slips

Hotel occupancy was down globally for the month of August, and revenue per available room slipped in the Americas, according to data today released by Smith Travel Research and STR Global.

"While performance in each region is influenced by different factors, the worldwide economic slowdown has started to take its toll on the hospitality industry," STR Global managing director James Chappell said in a statement. "The year-to-August 2008 results follow a similar trend with only the Middle East and Africa region reporting a slight increase in occupancy compared with the prior year."

Despite a 3 percent increase in average daily rate, RevPAR in the Americas dropped by 0.3 percent for the month, the only regional decline in RevPAR globally, according to STR Global. This also was despite a 26 percent increase of RevPAR in South America. Occupancy was down 3.2 percent in the Americas.

European RevPAR increased by only 0.3 percent in August, while occupancy was down 5.1 percent and ADR rose 5.7 percent. In the Asia/Pacific region, RevPAR grew by 13.1 percent, boosted by a 27.2 percent growth in ADR, the highest globally. The region's drop in occupancy, however, also was the highest globally, 11 percent.

The Middle East/Africa region saw the strongest growth in RevPAR, which was up 18.8 percent. ADR was up 19.4 percent, and occupancy dropped by 0.5 percent.