Travelore News: U.S. Hotel Markets Recover From The Pandemic; San Francisco An Outlier

A snapshot of 15 major U.S. hotel markets shows that travel to cities is rebounding, with one notable exception: San Francisco.

Several hotel activity metrics, including average price per room, revenue per room, and supply growth, show most major cities have rebounded from the worst of the pandemic. Some, including Miami, Florida, and Austin, Texas, are seeing notable growth in both supply and revenue.

However, San Francisco, a top 3 locale in the decade before the pandemic, is struggling. It faces a decline in tech jobs, slow return of Chinese travelers, reduced downtown traffic as more people work from home, and rising crime and homelessness that has tarnished the city's image.

Revenue per available room (RevPAR), a key performance metric, for San Francisco was down 30% in May 2023 from the same month in 2019, data from hotel analytics firm STR shows. Daily room rates averaged $207.72 in May, down 14% from $242.51 in May 2019.

Metrics like ADR and RevPAR are affected by seasonal trends but in San Francisco, the recovery is taking longer than in other major cities.

Earlier this month, real estate investment trust Park Hotels & Resorts said it planned to remove two hotels in the city from its portfolio. Developer Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield will transfer its Westfield San Francisco shopping mall to lenders after 20 years as it deals with declining customer visits.

Hotel Council of San Francisco CEO Alex Bastian said the recovery has been slow partly because of the sluggish return of visitors from mainland China, the city's largest pre-pandemic tourist group.

European travel to the city is at 2019 levels and may even surpass them this year, Bastian added. "We are headed in the right direction."

Numerous U.S. cities have seen hotel supply grow since before the pandemic, but the gains have been more pronounced in the U.S. Sun Belt. Miami has seen the most growth, with average daily rates and revenue per available room up 36% and 23%, respectively.

"Miami has been on a fairly seismic run when it comes to hospitality metrics," said Scott Berman, board member of the Greater Miami and the Beaches Hotel Association. "I don't know a hospitality operator that doesn't want to be in this market."

Miami is "the poster child" for strong leisure and healthy business demand as companies move their headquarters to Florida, said Jan Freitag, national director for hospitality analytics at commercial real estate analytics firm CoStar Group.

San Francisco is an "unfortunate outlier," with companies still not back in the office and concern about social issues curtailing business and leisure travel, Freitag said.

"Those two markets are in essence the main storyline of the hotel industry after the pandemic."

Reporting by Doyinsola Oladipo in New York; Editing by Richard Chang, Reuters.

Westin Hotels Continues To Lead Healthy Hotel Revolution

Westin Move Well Advocate - Holly Perkin

Westin Hotels & Resorts, part of Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT), has revealed the next phase of its year-long Westin Well-being Movement with the announcement of Westin Wellness Escapes, an ongoing well-being series led by experts in the fields of mindfulness meditation, nutrition, yoga, running and more. Taking place at Westin properties around the globe, the series will first launch inNorth America before rolling out internationally. Established health and fitness personalityHolly Perkins will kick off the series by hosting the Women's Strength Nation™ LIVE retreat this April, following her appointment to Westin's Well-Being Council as the brand'sMove Well Advocate.

Westin Wellness Escapes are designed to inspire empowerment and help attendees pursue their well-being through interactive workshops, including fitness classes, healthy cooking courses, panel discussions, seminars and robust itineraries of wellness activities. The inaugural retreat, held at The Westin San Diego Gaslamp Quarter Hotel,April 10-12, will consist of a weekend-long curriculum of tutorials, exercises and activities designed to help participants' cultivate their inner strength.
As a leading voice in fitness and the founder of Women's Strength Nation, a resource dedicated to educating women on the value of strength training, Holly will offer guests the inspiration and tools needed to lead a healthy lifestyle. Westin will also partner with other wellness leaders to curate subsequent retreats in 2015.

"The Westin Wellness Escapes series is designed to motivate and educate those seeking to achieve or sustain a healthy lifestyle while still exploring the world," saidBrian Povinelli, Global Brand Leader for Westin. "Similar to Westin's collaboration with New Balance, Holly's involvement in the program reinforces theMove Well philosophy and lets us further cater to the diverse needs of our guests."

Westin Picks Up the Pace with First-of-Its-Kind Series

Travelers are increasingly seeking quick and effective wellness breaks instead of extended holidays for mind and body reboots, choosing more accessible options that offer a brief change of scenery, relaxation and wellness activities. Leading research groups, such as Global Wellness Tourism Economy Report, predict that wellness tourism will grow by more than 9% per year through 2017, nearly 50% faster than overall global tourism.

Westin is capitalizing on this growing trend with Wellness Escapes to offer concise, thoughtfully organized itineraries for discerning, wellness-minded travelers. The series is inspired by the brand's six pillars of well-being: Feel Well, Work Well, Move Well, Eat Well, Sleep Well and Play Well. Themes will vary across all events; with each workshop focused on well-being and the Westin brand philosophy, "For a Better You."

The Westin Wellness Escapes slated in the brand's pipeline thus far is as follows:

* Women's Strength Nation LIVE with Fitness Expert Holly Perkins at The Westin San Diego Gaslamp Quarter --April 10-12, 2015 The weekend-long strength training retreat for women will enable attendees to achieve next level fitness through a multitude of educational sessions. Participants will learn techniques and methods derived from Holly's Women's Strength Nation platform to discover personal strength through the development of outer strength.

* Triathlon Recovery Retreat with runWESTIN Concierge Chris Heuisler at The Westin Jekyll Island --May 16-17, 2015In celebration of its grand opening and as part of its Jekyll Island Turtle Crawl Triathlon sponsorship, The Westin Jekyll Island will offer a 24-hour triathlon recovery retreat, hosted by runWESTIN Concierge,Chris Heuisler. Activities will kick off right away at the finish line of the race with a private tent for hotel guests, and continue both on and off-property until Sunday at check-out. Westin racers whobook a stay at the hotel on Saturday, May 16 will enjoy a number of carefully selected amenities targeted at the importance of proper recovery following a race, as well as an expertly crafted schedule of recovery activities and educational talks. Additional Wesitn Wellness Escapes will be announced throughout the year. To join the Westin Wellness Escapes conversation, users are invited to use #westinwellbeing on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Holly's Fitness Fundamentals Bring to Life Westin's Mantra "For a Better You"With 20 years of experience in the health industry, Holly is a leading voice in women's fitness and the ideal candidate to support the brand'sMove Well pillar and host the inaugural Westin Wellness Escapes retreat with her Women's Strength Nation programming. Also, as part of the collaboration, Holly has produced four strength training videos with exclusive and engaging content focusing on tips and tricks for staying fit while traveling.

Developed as 5-minute video segments, the films provide a comprehensive, equipment free, 20-minute workout which can easily be done in a guest room or at home. The video content is accessible via on-demand for free at 80+ hotels across the country in addition to being available on Westin's YouTube channels andwestin.com now.

As a certified strength and conditioning specialist, Holly's success is derived from her philosophy that science should be the foundation of fitness. In 2014, Holly created the Women's Strength Nation community to educate, inspire and lead women towards a new definition of inner strength. The platform serves as a resource for women seeking to enhance their strength in, and out of, the gym.

The Westin Well-being Council is a diverse advisory board composed of renowned thought leaders, each of whom aligns with a specific wellness brand pillar. Perkins joins Council membersAshley Koff, internationally-renowned dietician,Andy Puddicombe, Headspace Co-Founder and mediation expert, and media mogulArianna Huffington in guiding and inspiring new initiatives, leveraging proprietary research to inform and introduce new programs throughout the year.

"It is exciting to join the Westin Well Being Council and help you stay fit even when you travel," saidHolly Perkins. "An active life is key to ensuring optimal health, wellbeing and vitality. In order to thrive, the human body needs to run, jump, dance and play every day. My mission in life is to provide inspiration and tools for you to create a fitness plan that works for your lifestyle and helps you achieve your personal best."

About The Westin Well-being Movement With a brand positioning rooted in wellness for more than a decade, Westin Hotels & Resorts is dedicated to ensuring that guests leave feeling better than when they arrived. Earlier this year the brand launched The Westin Well-Being Movement -- a year-long global initiative designed to enhance the well-being of guests and associates with the introduction of a string of innovative partnerships and programs across the brand's six pillars of well-being: Feel Well, Work Well, Move Well, Eat Well, Sleep Well and Play Well. Building upon its existing healthy SuperFoodsRx™ menus, Westin recently introduced new delicious and nutrient-rich offerings includingWestin Fresh by The Juicery, featuring energizing juices and smoothies, and kid-tested nourishing dishes developed in partnership with SuperChefs on the Westin Eat Well Menu for Kids (Eat Well). The brand also recently announced a partnership with the mindful meditation app, Headspace (Feel Well), in which guests have exclusive access to customized content through the Westin website, designed to spread healthy benefits including decreasing stress, improving mood and increasing creativity.

The inspiration for Westin's wellness strategy, the iconic Heavenly® Bed (Sleep Well) is beloved by guests and lauded as one of hospitality's great innovations. WestinWORKOUT®, RunWESTIN™ and Westin Gear Lending with New Balance® (Move Well) together pack a formidable punch, offering guests a holistic fitness solution. The brand's nature-inspired design, signature sensory welcome, Heavenly Bath and Heavenly Spa (Feel Well) offer a relaxing respite from the rigors of travel. Tangent (Work Well), an innovative workspace concept for small groups modeled to support today's mobile traveler, is receiving rave reviews and high usage from guests in locations where available. Westin Weekend (Play Well) signature experiences are designed to let guests escape, discover and relax and the brand's digital destination guide, Westin Finds from AFAR, provides guests with uniquely curated travel experiences.