SAM Magazine—Winter Park, Colo.—July 13, 2023—Positive economic news during June spurred an uptick in advance summer reservations, according to DestiMetrics’ most recent monthly Market Briefing. 

Data compiled through June 30 revealed that the booking pace increased and daily rates improved slightly after five months of softening compared to last summer. However, occupancy from May through October is down 3.6 percent compared to last summer’s record-breaking level. 

Summer Average Daily Rate (ADR) is up 1.3 percent overall with small increases each month with the exception of July and August. However, the small increase in room rates was unable to offset lower occupancy rates and resulted in a 2.6 percent decline in summer revenues compared to last year. 

“Daily rates are very much the story again this month as year-over-year rates have actually ticked up very slightly since May 31, despite all the inflationary pressure,” said Tom Foley, senior vice president of business intelligence for Inntopia. “But those minor increases to historically high rates were not equally distributed across all summer months or all participating regions and properties.” 

Actual occupancy in June was down just 0.7 percent compared to last June, “marking an appreciable improvement from where it was at the end of May,” according to the report.

Bookings were up in three of six months compared to last year. A 16.5 percent increase in bookings was recorded in June and bookings for July increased 26.9 percent. 

“That accelerated pace lifted July occupancy from being down 8.6 percent at the end of May to only being down 3.9 percent as of June 30, a significant recovery, however, August through October were all down,” Foley said.

Foley noted the two summer months—June and July—that recorded increases in occupancy were also the two months that saw slight decreases in daily rates. In contrast, properties experiencing a slower pace were also offering higher year-over-year rates. 

“Correlation doesn’t necessarily mean causation, and there could be other variables in play, especially since the rate increases are fairly modest,” Foley said. “However, it is a pattern we have been following for several months and suggests a return to more typical ‘supply and demand’ economics.”

DestiMetrics’ Market Briefing is based on data from approximately 28,000 lodging properties in seven states.