Since last spring, the global hotel industry seems to have drawn an almost definitive line under the troubled months and months. The upturn was confirmed by the results presented by the major groups in mid-summer. " Once again this quarter, Accor recorded very strong growth in its business, with sales exceeding pre-crisis levels for the first time" said Sébastien Bazin, commenting on the figures announced by the French group. Its sales totalled €1,725 million, up 971TP3Q on a like-for-like basis compared with the first half of 2021. At the same time, revenue per room - RevPAR, a key indicator for the sector - for the second quarter of 2022 was up +1% compared with the same period in 2019.
Compared with the first quarter, which was still marked by the Omicron wave, the spring of 2022 was the first in a long time not to be hit by the after-effects of the pandemic, except in Chinawhose 'zero covid' policy is penalising hotel results across the whole of Asia. Of course, this widespread return to pre-covid levels is above all the consequence ofa significant rise in pricesThis trend is being driven by demand, but also accentuated by inflation. The average price for the IHG Group, for example, is +4% higher than in the first half of 2019.
At the same time, British hotel occupancy remained 10 points down on the same pre-covid period. However, the attendance has improved month on month since the start of the year, thanks in particular to more business trips and business meetings. " In parallel with leisure stays, demand for business and group travel continued to return over the period." said Keith Barr, CEO of IHG Hotels & Resorts.
The upturn in international travel combined with the good performance of the various domestic markets has led to very favourable results for the world's leading hotel companies. As for Hilton, its net income for the second quarter - 367 million dollars - has, according to the American group, exceeded his most optimistic expectationsWhile its worldwide RevPAR was down by only 2.1 1TP3Q compared with the second quarter of 2019.
As for Hyatt, revenue from hotel royalties reached an all-time high, " 27 % higher than any other quarter, thanks to a record level of transient leisure customers and a rapid improvement in demand from groups and businesses" noted Mark Hoplamazian, CEO of the American hotel group. A group which has noted in particular higher demand in 2019 for short-term bookings by business groups. This bodes well for the future, as the upturn continued in July, when Hyatt recorded RevPAR of 5%, higher than in 2019. This too was one of the best months ever for the group.
Strong demand for meetings and seminars has been the pleasant surprise for hoteliers in recent months, both in Europe and on the other side of the Atlantic. Marriott notes that in North America, RevPAR generated by groups is the segment that saw the strongest acceleration in the second half of the year " down only 1% in June compared with 2019, compared with a decline of -30% in the first quarter" said Anthony Capuano, CEO of Marrriott.
The world's leading group by number of rooms - which exceeded 1.5 million keys during the quarter - saw RevPAR in its key region, North America, post a 1.3 % increase compared to the second half of 2019, while its other international markets recorded a -14.1 % decline. This overall result was weighed down by China and the Asia region, but not by Europe, which saw " also saw a strong recovery, largely thanks to the return of international visitors, June's RevPAR higher than in 2019" says Anthony Capuano.
"The Europe-Middle East-Africa region saw an excellent improvement in its performance" Keith Barr of IHG also noted. The analysis of results by region presented by Accor gives an idea of the dynamics of recovery within the continent. For example, in the second quarter of 2022, hotels in the Southern Europe sub-region posted a 21TP3Q RevPAR higher than in 2019. In France in particular, this result is 3% higher than in the rest of Europe.Hotels in Paris, which had long lagged behind the rest of the country, are benefiting from the upturn in international travel and major events such as the Champions League football final. Similarly, the hotel industry in London, another of the world's major metropolises, is showing a marked upturn, as is the UK as a whole. However, RevPAR in Northern Europe was down by 71TP3Q compared to the second quarter of 2019, with the overall result weighed down by the German hotel industry, which was penalised by the later lifting of health restrictions, but whose business recovered in line with that of its neighbours with the arrival of summer.
For the rest of the world, the effect of the reopening of the internal and external borders of the Pacific countries at the end of 2021 continued, resulting in a second quarter up 9% on the second quarter of 2019. However, the Asia-Pacific region, dependent on the Chinese domestic market and its travellersRevPAR fell by 18% in the second quarter of 2022 compared with the second quarter of 2019. South-East Asia (-31% in the second quarter of 2022) was penalised in particular by Chinese customers. Conversely, the India, Middle East, Africa & Turkey region has continued to grow for three quarters now (+32%), while in South America, particularly Brazil, hotel occupancy reached levels higher than 2019 over the whole of the second quarter of 2022.
What can we expect in the months ahead? Sébastien Bazin predicts that the summer will be " confirm these trends" , l'autumn also promises to be "solide with the return of major seminars and conferences" . Despite an uncertain geopolitical and economic climate, Keith Barr is also confident about the strength of the sector's recovery: " Although the economic outlook is uncertain, with central banks and governments taking steps to manage inflation, we remain confident in our business model and in the industry fundamentals that will deliver sustainable long-term growth."
