TRENDING
Hotel execs embrace changing travel patterns
THE TRAVEL INDUSTRY IS FACING A SHIFT IN HOW PEOPLE TRAVEL — FROM LEISURE TO CORPORATE . IS IT PREPARED ?
By DAVID EISEN , EDITOR IN CHIEF
L
OS ANGELES — COVID-19 was a global inflection point , a pivot into a new way of living that is possibly permanent . The remaking of the way people socialize , the way people work , the way people eat have all had an impact on the way people travel , and this is not necessarily a bad thing , according to hotel executives speaking at the Americas Lodging Investment Summit , here at the JW Marriott at LA Live .
The shift in travel trends means changing the way hotels cater to customers . One thing is for sure , leisure travel , which saved the hotel industry from abject collapse , continues to deliver demand and revenue , but will it last ? According to Pat Pacious , president & CEO of Choice Hotels International , the leisure boom is being driven by some long-term fundamentals and what he called the three Rs : remote work , rising wages and retirement .
“ Remote work has lifted the constraint of time ,” he said , noting an increase in Thursday checkins and Monday checkouts . He continued , “ Wages are up and the middle class got a pay raise and is using it on travel . Last , retirement , giving them the freedom to travel .” Pacious said Choice is well positioned for this last cohort because , as he put it , “ People tend to travel in midscale properties when not traveling on the corporate dime .”
8 hotelsmag . com Mar / Apr 2023