Hotels worldwide expect occupancy levels and room rates to fall by between 5% and 10% this year compared with 2008, according to the Global Hotel Market Sentiment Survey published on Thursday by hotel consultancy Horwath HTL.
Hotels worldwide expect occupancy levels and room rates to fall by between 5% and 10% this year compared with 2008, according to the Global Hotel Market Sentiment Survey published on Thursday by hotel consultancy Horwath HTL.
The survey, which was held among more than 2,700 hoteliers, found that 71% of respondents expect occupancy levels to drop in 2009, while 67% predict a decline in average room rates. As a result, more than 70% of hoteliers expect turnover to be substantially lower than last year, with almost a third even forecasting a decline of 10-15%.
According to Horwath's sentiment index, which measures hoteliers' sentiments on a scale from -150 to +150, the score for Europe comes out at -36.0, slightly lower than the worldwide average of -34.2. Hoteliers are most optimistic in Norway (-20.3) and most pessimistic in Slovakia (-68.4).
The general negative outlook applies to all hotel segments, with more than 50% of respondents predicting a decline in the business, congress and tourist sectors. The worsening state of the global economy was perceived as having the most harmful impact on hotel performance, followed by global and local stock market trends.
