Non-room revenue is proving to be an excellent diversification strategy for hospitality companies in North America, according to research from Mews, a hospitality technology platform. The study showed that nearly 20% of hotels in North America are selling additional bookable spaces to day guests and visitors (such as parking lots and meeting rooms), a 69% increase year over year, with average revenue generated per space increasing 22% year over year (an average of $362 extra per reservation). Monthly additional bookable service revenue more than doubled year over year.
The Mews Data Snap, a real-time measure of hospitality’s performance during the summer of 2023 (June, July, and August). compares this year’s data to summer 2022 to pinpoint how the hospitality sector is changing. Findings included:
Travel continues to move in a positive trend: average occupancy for summer 2023 was 62%, up 5% year over year. June was the best-performing month, while August saw the highest percentage of rooms occupied.
Increased rates didn’t deter consumers from traveling Average daily rate (ADR) and revenue per available room (RevPAR) saw clear, positive movement despite little change in occupancy. ADR rose 9% year over year ($25) to an average of $294, in part due to inflation among other factors. RevPAR saw a significant increase of 14% year over year ($22) to $178, including on average $30 higher in June year over year.
Travelers continue to embrace the convenience and instant gratification of online check-in and upgrades: while the number of guests utilizing online check-in remained relatively the same year over year (nearly 20%), more guests upgraded their reservations via online check-in, as upselling increased 31% year over year to $51 per upgrade. Top upgrades include early check-in, pet fees, late check-out, breakfast, and drinks or food upon arrival.
Matt Welle, CEO of Mews, said “it’s easy to talk about hospitality trends based on what we feel is happening, but there’s no substitute for real data.” He said that “not only can we see that people continue to return to travel, but the data shows that hoteliers are embracing the idea of hybrid hospitality and a more creative use of spaces and reaping the rewards.”
