French Hotel Industry Performances - February 2013
February: a slightly brighter outlook for the hotel industry?
Although increasing occupancy did tend to ultimately compensate for the drop in average rates, there were two exceptions: the Luxury segment, whose RevPAR rose by +2.3% and Super-budget hotels whose RevPAR dropped by -1.8%. However, a deeper analysis of the various hotel markets illustrates that geographical differences exist.
Overall, French hotels recorded a slight increase in occupancy in February, although falling average rates eroded any progressions. On a local scale, contrasts could be observed, with certain towns showing improvement and others experiencing a drop in demand. Differences in the timing of school holidays explain this phenomenon, with certain towns benefiting from an increase in corporate demand, and others suffering a decline. 2 French Hotel Industry Performances – February 2013 Definitions OR = Occupancy Rate ADR = Average Daily Rate RevPAR = Revenue per available room In general, the French hotel industry performed better in February than in January, as occupancy rose in almost all categories except for Super-budget hotels (a decline of almost -1%). The outlook thus looks slightly brighter for the French hotel industry, although we should be wary of being too optimistic: average rates dropped almost everywhere in France compared with February 2012. Although the decline remains minimal (less than 2% for all categories), the trend is slightly worrying. Hopefully, it won‟t last long. Although increasing occupancy did tend to ultimately compensate for the drop in average rates, there were two exceptions: the Luxury segment, whose RevPAR rose by +2.3% and Super-budget hotels whose RevPAR dropped by -1.8%. However, a deeper analysis of the various hotel markets illustrates that geographical differences exist. While the rising occupancy trend was indeed perceptible in Paris and on the Côte d‟Azur, gaps between towns were particularly wide, especially in terms of occupancy rates. For instance, in the Midscale segment, occupancy performances ranged from -22% for Cannes to +14% for Nancy, a phenomenon experienced by all categories. Does this mean that part of the market has started to recover, with the remainder still deep in recession?
In fact, performance disparities can partly be explained by the different timing of school holidays. Last year, for instance, schools belonging to the regional education authorities “A” (Caen, Grenoble, etc.) and “C” (Bordeaux, Paris, etc.) were mainly on holiday in February, and those belonging to the authority “B” (Aix-Marseille, Amiens, etc.) in March. This year, the opposite is true, with certain markets benefitting from greater corporate demand. Although this is evidently not the only element to affect the hotel market, it does appear to be a deciding factor.