Caption Here

ne thing is certain : Beyond carrying a melody , that Taylor Swift sure can put heads in beds . Her Eras Tour killed , not only in arenas across the globe , but in hotels : Swifties , young and old , need a place to stay when they aren ’ t Swifting , after all . Her tour not only broke records , but it also literally shifted local economies and , undoubtedly , was responsible for basis-point RevPAR gains from Minneapolis to Melbourne .

A shame there won ’ t be a repeat performance .

Still , the hotel industry had much else to cheer in 2024 with

even better prospects for 2025 , according to the JLL Hotels and Hospitality Research ’ s Global Hotel Investment Outlook 2025 . One of the most salient findings is that consumers continue to prioritize travel , though the composition might be changing five years clear of the COVID pandemic . While leisure travel was the highest makeup of demand coming right out of COVID , it is now moderating , but stepping in to fill the void are group , corporate and international travel , which JLL predicts will accelerate meaningfully and fuel anticipated 3 % to 5 % global RevPAR growth in 2025 . This

should only improve with many companies mandating full-time , back-to-office mandates that can further fuel business travel .

Performance , JLL noted , will remain uneven across regions , with Asia-Pacific likely to see the largest growth driven by the continued recovery of Chinese travelers , which has lagged globally up to now . What to watch for ? Muted supply growth , which remains below historical levels , but will benefit hotels particularly in urban markets and other high-barrierto-entry markets .

Though RevPAR has historically been the biggest measure of performance

success , hotels , from selectservice to full-service , are no longer just places to sleep and benefit from many different streams of revenue as the lines between work , life and travel become increasingly blurred . “ Hotels have morphed into the new ‘ third place ’ as they extend beyond just places to sleep ,” said Zach Demuth , global head of hotels research , JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group , who contributed to the report .

WHAT ’ S THE DEAL ? Hotel transactions lagged in 2024 , but 2025 could see a meaningful pickup . Global hotel investment volume

54 hotelsmag . com Mar / Apr 2025