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HOTEL

Bargain Travelers Beware: Hotel Rates to Remain High This Summer

by Tracy J. Chu

 

Travelers hoping for a hotel rate reprieve this summer after last year’s higher room rates may need to perform some extra legwork to find a bargain. Marriott reports they will feature higher hotel rates this year per room, although travelers shouldn’t expect the percentage hikes to be anywhere near as high as they were in 2022.

Will higher hotel rates keep the guests away? Marriott CEO Anthony Capuano doesn’t believe so. During a recent Investment Summit in Los Angeles, Capuano assuaged industry professionals’ concerns that “we do not think we have tapped all of the pent-up demand that’s out there for travel.”

With steady demand and more people willing to travel as the pandemic moves further away from their primary concerns, finding a discount may be a challenging search this summer.

Should hoteliers relax this season and wait for rooms to book at any price? Travel expert and Ask A Concierge’s Sarah Dandashy believes prudence and preparation for travelers and hoteliers alike is the best bet in this current climate.

Sarah’s Thoughts

“There has been a lot of talk lately about what we can expect moving forward into the summer of 2023 regarding hotel room rates. Will they still be as pricey and expensive as we saw in 2022? The short answer is yes, although the price jump won’t be as significant as we saw last year. Marriott’s CEO recently shared this information as well.

As far as this price hike and how it will impact travel demands, it is not so significant that it will deter travelers from traveling. Travelers expect that they are going to be paying a premium. They understand and value their paid time off, and there has been this consumer travel consumer shift that they will pay the price to go and have their

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HOTEL

HOTELS.COM PREDICTS SEASON-LOW LODGING PRICES THIS WINTER DURING “COLD SHOULDER SEASON”

by Tracy J. Chu

Here’s When and Where Hotel Prices Dip Below $150 per Night This Winter

DALLAS, Nov. 30, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Travelers aren’t typically searching for last-minute deals in December, but this year, ’tis the season for holiday travel. According to data from Hotels.com, now is the best time to plan a budget-friendly break for “cold shoulder season,” happening the weekend before Christmas and again after the New Year, with nightly hotel rates expected to dip below $150 a night.1

Solace Hotel Santiago in Santiago, Chile, one of the many destinations where average daily rates fall below $150/night in January.

Hotels.com pinpoints best times and cities to take advantage of season-low lodging rates below $150/night.

“In a typical year, travelers can find the best deals between Labor Day and Thanksgiving during fall shoulder season,” said Melanie Fish, spokesperson for Hotels.com. “But travel demand hit an all-time high this summer and never really slowed down, meaning people searching for off-season deals had to do some extra digging to find those price drops. What’s great about this latest Hotels.com intel is that we’ve zeroed in on exactly when to travel for some of the best rates.” 

When to travel for $150 or less

Hotels.com analyzed average hotel rates in the app from July through January to pinpoint the two best times to take advantage of season-low lodging rates below $150 a night. The best time to go this year is the weekend before Christmas, from December 15 – December 20. For those already carefully plotting their PTO next year, the best time for a getaway is after the New Year holiday, January 3- January 8.

  • Best time to travel in 2022: December 15 – December 20
  • Best time to travel in 2023: January 3 – January 8

With the majority of travel concentrated to Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Eve, travelers with the flexibility to take a trip

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TRAVELLING

How to Prepare for Travel Chaos Over the Holidays

by Tracy J. Chu

After two years of stop-and-start COVID-19 restrictions, Americans are ready to re-embrace holiday travel this year. If you’re hitting the road, expect company—lots of it. According to a recent survey from travel booking app Hopper, almost 60% of people plan to travel over Thanksgiving, the winter holidays or both.

“We have a lot of demand and fewer seats to book,” says Hayley Berg, Hopper’s lead economist.

The surge comes as travel and tourism companies are paying more for labor and other major costs like jet fuel—and passing those price hikes along to customers. Airfares have climbed by nearly 43% on a year-over-year basis, according to the October Consumer Price Index. Hotel rates were up by nearly 6.5% for the year, and experts predict this will rise further around the holidays. Hopper found that Thanksgiving hotel rates are an average of 13% higher than last year, while Christmas rates are up by 32%.

Higher prices are probably here to stay for the foreseeable future. Multiple airline industry executives have cited strong demand on recent earnings calls, and travelers seem willing to pay up: A survey by travel-planning site The Vacationer found that 16% of respondents are planning to spend more than $1,000 on Thanksgiving travel, and about 20% are planning to spend more than $1,000 taking trips over the winter holidays.

If you’re planning a get-together or getaway this holiday season, here’s what this means for you.

Fewer flights and pricier tickets

Airlines have pared back their schedules, especially to smaller destinations. This means residents of many smaller cities who used to be able to fly direct will now have to travel to a larger hub airport, says Kathleen Bangs, spokeswoman at flight-tracking company FlightAware. “The issue is it’s much, much harder for the regionals to find pilots,” she

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