Marriott Reports Rise In Business Travel

Marriott International today reported that a strong uptick in business travel boosted occupancy in the first quarter of this year and it soon expects to be positioned to begin increasing room rates.

In the company's first-quarter earnings report, Marriott chairman and CEO J.W. Marriott Jr. said business travel traffic improved worldwide during the quarter, and corporate room nights in North America were 16 percent higher than they were in the first quarter of 2009.

"While first-quarter room rates were generally lower than last year, as occupancy levels continue to improve, we see higher room rates on the horizon," according to Marriott. "In fact, we anticipate that North American systemwide revenue per available room will increase by 3 percent to 6 percent for the full year 2010 with higher room rates by year-end."

Marriott added that he expected strong demand in Europe, South America and Asia to boost RevPAR levels outside North America even higher.

For the first quarter, RevPAR was about flat compared with last year, slightly down in North America but up internationally, according to the company. Rates continued to decline during the quarter, particularly in full-service and luxury hotels in North America, where rates fell 7.8 percent compared with 2009. Rates internationally were down 4.5 percent.

Marriott added 44 properties, totaling 8,361 rooms, and removed seven properties, totaling 1,146 rooms, during the quarter. Its development pipeline stands at more than 600 hotels, with more than 95,000 rooms, the company reported.