Skift Take
Group rates, corporate rates, and higher end luxury hotels are holding up strong, even in this economy, and that's what is helping Marriott and competitors as well.
Marriott International, the largest publicly traded U.S. hotel chain, reported earnings that beat estimates after demand for high-end brands increased. The results were buoyed by demand for Marriott’s high-end hotels in the U.S., including its luxury Ritz-Carlton brand, Patrick Scholes, a hospitality-industry analyst at research firm Suntrust Robinson Humphrey Inc. in New York, said before results were announced. Revenue per available room at Marriott’s full- service and luxury hotels climbed 6.8 percent in North America, more than the 6.3 percent revpar increase for all hotels in the region.
Reuters: A demand recovery in North America and rising room rates in the face of limited supply growth is helping Marriott offset softness in Europe. North America accounts for 75 percent of business at Marriott, whose brands include Ritz-Carlton, Residence Inn and Courtyard…Results were helped by rising revenue tied to group meetings and corporate travel. Marriott said it is negotiating corporate business for next year and is looking to achieve high single-digit-percentage increases in room rates.
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