Tourism boom a boon for hotels’ bottom line
A boom in the tourism sector in the first half of 2017 helped boost the bottom line for British Columbia hotels, which showed higher occupancy rates and increased revenue, according to a new report.
At the end of June, occupancy in B. C. hotels increased the equivalent of two percentage points to hit 67.4 per cent over the same period a year ago, according to the U. S. hospitality research firm Marcus & Millichap.
Canada saw international arrivals rise 16 per cent during the period, which drove some of the increase, according to the report, as did increasing domestic travel, thanks in part to Canada 150 celebrations.
That increased occupancy translated into a 9.1 per cent gain in the average amount of revenue generated per room that hotels have available, which is a measurement the industry uses to gauge performance. On average, properties were earning $ 112 per available room.
Occupancy rates increased just slightly in the city of Vancouver — less than a percentage point — but revenue per room increased by 7.2 per cent, according to the report, to hit $ 130.82. Vancouver’s hotel occupancy increased regardless of any influence short- term rental services such as Airbnb might be having on the market, which the report’s authors say is hard to estimate.
Generally, Airbnb estimates that 76 per cent of their listings are outside of the main hotel districts of the cities it operates in, according to the authors, but cities will still see demand for hotel rooms close to major attractions.