Business travelers made up 52.5 percent of U.S. lodging industry room revenue in 2019. The American Hotel & Lodging Association projects that share to represent just 43.6 percent in 2022, according to its 2022 State of the Hotel Industry Report, released Monday.
Further, business travel demand is projected to reach just 80 percent of 2019 levels by the third quarter of 2022, according to Kalibri Labs, while U.S. meetings volume recovery is forecast to reach 58 percent by the end of 2022, according to Knowland's U.S. Meetings Recovery Forecast, referenced in the report.
"The slow return of business travel and fewer meetings and events continue to have a significant negative impact on our industry," said AHLA president and CEO Chip Rogers in a statement. "The growth of leisure and bleisure travel represents a shift for our industry, and hotels will continue evolving to meet the needs of these 'new' travelers."
The AHLA report notes, however, that business travel is "not a thing of the past." The Global Business Travel Association in November projected business travel demand, though lagging leisure, to recover to 2019 levels by 2024, and Knowland projects meetings volume to reach 110 percent of the 2019 baseline by the end of that year.
AHLA reconfirmed that small and midsize enterprises continued to lead the way in business travel recovery, and that this segment represents a growth opportunity for midweek hotel occupancy. "This is largely [an] untapped market—one that was often squeezed out by the largest corporate negotiated segment," according to the report.
Technology will play an increasing role in the guest experience and become more personalized, including more flexible options in booking, check-in and check-out times and individual food-and-beverage options, according to the report. That means potentially fewer interactions with hotel staff, which the industry has had trouble hiring. In an October 2021 AHLA member survey, nearly 94 percent of respondents said their hotel were understaffed, and 96 percent of respondents were trying to hire but have been unable to fill open positions.
AHLA partnered with Accenture to produce the report.