Why Marriott Sees a Full Hotels Recovery in China in 2021
Photo Credit: Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson said his company's hotels in China (pictured: Beijing) are on track to reach 2019 revenue levels as early as next year. Wikimedia / Morio
Skift Take
If China continues its centralized government's stance of rapid response to coronavirus outbreaks, a full hotel industry recovery there by the end of next year isn't as impossible as it may seem.
While most of the global travel industry has a giant question mark over future demand levels, hotels in China could be back to pre-pandemic revenue performance as early as next year.
Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson has repeatedly described the coronavirus pandemic’s fiscal impact on the hotel industry as worse than the September 11 terrorist attacks and 2008 financial crisis combined. But China is a bright spot in Marriott’s portfolio.
Marriott is still likely three years out from a complete global recovery, Sorenson said Thursday during an NPR interview about the company’s recent layoffs at its Maryland headquarters. But the hotel executive maintained Marriott is “closest to being back to normal in China.”
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While average occupancy sank below 10 percent across Marriott’s 350 Chinese hotels during the worst of the pandemic, the com
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