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Opinion Articles

Opinion Article Markets & Performance

Denver Hotel Market Outlook: Signs of Stabilization and Rate Recovery by 2026

After an early post-pandemic rebound, Denver’s hotel market lost momentum in late 2023. Occupancy growth stalled in October 2023 as the leisure surge faded and corporate travel recovery plateaued, followed by limited rate growth through much of 2024. Occupancy declined each month from September 2024 through August 2025, as corporate and transient demand softened and government transient and group demand declined more significantly this year.

Katy Black
By Katy Black, Senior Vice President at HVS Denver, HVS
Denver, Colorado, United States
Opinion Article Markets & Performance

San Francisco’s Hotel Investment Outlook Brightens

The San Francisco lodging market has been experiencing a major rebound in performance, with RevPAR up 8.9% as of year-to-date August. This improvement has been driven by a strong convention calendar, major employers implementing return-to-office mandates, and modest growth in tourism levels. San Francisco Travel Association anticipates Moscone Center will generate over 650,000 room nights in 2025, which equates to roughly 106.0% of 2023 levels but only 68.0% of peak 2019 performance. Salesforce, the city’s largest private employer, implemented a full return-to-office policy in January 2025. Gap, Inc. has been phasing in a return to office, increasing from two days a week in January to five days a week by the end of September 2025. The City of San Francisco has also implemented a four-day in-person mandate beginning August 2025.

John Berean
By John Berean, Senior Vice President, San Francisco, HVS
San Francisco, California, United States
Opinion Article Markets & Performance

Correctional Crisis Spurs Hotel Boom in Upstate New York

On February 17, 2025, thousands of corrections officers at more than 25 prisons across Upstate New York went on strike over staffing shortages, poor working conditions, and the implementation of the HALT Act, which limits the use of solitary confinement in New York State prisons and jails. In an address to the public, New York State Governor Kathy Hochul reported that these strikes were considered illegal, as the state’s Taylor Law prohibits public employees from striking. The strike lasted 22 days before the State and the New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association (NYSCOPBA) reached an agreement that brought many of the striking employees back to work.

Cole Masler
By Cole Masler, Senior Manager, New York, HVS
New York, New York, United States
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Opinion Article Operations & Strategy

2025 Lodging Tax Report - USA

Since room sales generate lodging tax revenues, an overview of hotel market trends provides insight into the industry’s current and future fiscal impacts. As documented in our 2024 HVS Lodging Tax Study, the national lodging market has experienced recent growth in average daily room rates and revenue per available room. However, occupancy levels have remained relatively flat. The Average Daily Room Rate (“ADR”) represents the average revenue earned for each room rented in a hotel. Revenue per available room (“RevPAR”), the product of ADR and occupancy rate, is a standard industry metric that combines the effects of occupancy and room rates on overall revenue performance. ADR and RevPAR increased in 2024 but has seen slower growth through the first eight months of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024. The figure below compares year-over-year growth in the national lodging market from 2023 through August 2025.

Max LeedsHenry DetmerThomas Hazinski
By Max Leeds, Henry Detmer, and Thomas Hazinski
United States
Opinion Article Sales & Marketing

Hospitality Perfection at Halekulani in Honolulu

In our travels for business and pleasure, we have had the opportunity to experience what now amounts to hundreds of luxury properties. Many of our visits are short, one or two nights, with most time spent in conferences or offices and a lack of vitamin D. These ‘quickies’ give you a feel for décor, topline service, and usually a snippet of their F&B prowess (especially when you are fortunate enough to dine with the GM!). But to really appreciate the essence of a property requires an in-depth period of a week or more.

Larry MogelonskyAdam Mogelonsky
By Larry Mogelonsky and Adam Mogelonsky
Honolulu, Hawaii, United States
Opinion Article Finance

2025/26 Federal Per-Diem Update: Steady Rates Ahead

The federal government per-diem rate is made up of a lodging allowance and a meals and incidental expense (M&IE) allowance. The per-diem lodging rates, which set the maximum amount a federal traveler can reimburse, are based on the average rates for mid-priced hotels and are set annually by the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA). A standard rate applies to most of the continental United States (CONUS), while individual rates apply to about 300 non-standard areas (NSAs), mostly comprising primary destinations or key cities.

Chelsey Leffet
By Chelsey Leffet, Managing Director, Northeast Leader, HVS
United States
Opinion Article Design & Architecture

Hawaiian Ultraluxury Rebirth with Kona Village, A Rosewood Resort

There’s no better word to describe Kona Village – nestled in Kahuwai Bay along the western coast of the island of Hawaii – than as a paradise. Considered a sacred spot by the first Polynesian settlers who have called it home in centuries-old village of Kaʻūpūlehu, Kona Village Resort was first established in 1965 and run by a husband and wife team who welcomed guests for decades with a charming ‘ohana (family) spirit.

Larry MogelonskyAdam Mogelonsky
By Larry Mogelonsky and Adam Mogelonsky
Kona Village, Hawaii, United States
Opinion Article Markets & Performance

Is Trump Torpedoing His Own Hospitality Sector?

That the persona of Donald Trump stirs strong emotions is clear. The same can be said about his policies. In particular his trade policy is seen by many non-Americans as an attack on long-standing friendships. The way Trump forces countries into (trade) concessions rubs so many the wrong way that they no longer view the U.S. as a reliable ally. In that light, economic shifts are taking place with major consequences, including for the number of visitors to the United States—and therefore for the U.S. hospitality sector.

Alexander Sassen
By Alexander Sassen, Lecturer Finance & ESG, Hotelschool The Hague
United States
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Opinion Article Operations & Strategy

Immersive Hospitality: Redefining the Guest Experience

Immersive experiences are not entirely new to hospitality and leisure—theme parks, destination hotels and resorts, and cultural attractions have long found ways to draw guests into unique worlds. What is changing is how properties are increasingly using technology to push those experiences further, creating spaces that blur the lines between the physical and digital and redefine what guests expect from leisure destinations.

Joseph Pierce
By Joseph Pierce, Director of Appraisal & Consulting Services, Hotel & Leisure Advisors (H&LA)
United States
Opinion Article Markets & Performance

Galveston’s Lodging Sector Evolves with Cruise Growth, Supply Changes, and Regulatory Shifts

Galveston’s lodging market is being reshaped by capital investments and regulatory changes. Since 2019, more than $400 million has been spent on new cruise terminals, resort redevelopments, and boutique hotel conversions, while cruise passenger counts reached a record 1.7 million in 2024. With new projects underway and new short-term-rental oversights, growth will be affected by shifting supply and demand dynamics.

Bunmi Oyinloye
By Bunmi Oyinloye, Senior Vice President, Leader - Houston Office, Houston, HVS
Galveston, Texas, United States
Opinion Article Markets & Performance

Texas Goes All In For Convention Centers

Convention Centers have emerged as a hub of industry, commerce, culture, and architecture. Since they first marked the maps in the mid-20th-century U.S., they have become a symbol of economic progress. As the global events industry rebounds from the COVID-19 pandemic’s disruption, convention centers across the U.S. are rapidly transforming to meet the evolving expectations of today’s planners and attendees. Events are no longer just about networking and sharing information; they are full-fledged experiences, powered by smart infrastructure, flexible layouts, immersive technology, and access to vibrant urban surroundings.

Tarika Jain
By Tarika Jain, Senior Associate, Chicago, HVS
Texas, United States