Hotel rates in Canada in March 2022 exceeded 2019 levels for the first time since the pandemic began according to recent data from STR.
Photo by Pixabay
“Hotel performance improved significantly with the elimination of nearly all COVID-related restrictions across the country,” said Laura Baxter, CoStar Group’s director of hospitality analytics for Canada. CoStar Group is the parent company of STR. “The absolute occupancy level was the highest for any month since September 2021, with the index to 2019 reaching a pandemic-era high at 89. In addition, the lack of gathering restrictions allowed group demand to reach its highest level since February 2020, which bodes well for the outlook near-term. We typically see group travel rise until June before being replaced by transient leisure demand over the summer.”
According to the data, room rates exceeded 2019 levels in March 2022, and STR expects the momentum to continue into April, with rates $2 ahead of the pre-pandemic comparable.
Among all provinces and territories, British Columbia recorded the highest occupancy rate in March (63.2%) with Vancouver seeing the highest occupancy (65.7%) across major markets.
“The outlook for the rest of the year is positive, especially now that testing requirements at the border have been lifted and international arrivals are expected to gradually increase,” Baxter said. “Occupancy is currently forecasted to reach 57%, while ADR is expected to come in at $158 for full-year 2022. The longer-term position remains relatively consistent with previous versions of the forecast. RevPAR is expected to come within $2 of pre-pandemic results next year and exceed 2019 levels in 2024 in nominal terms. However, when adjusted for inflation, it extends the full recovery position beyond 2025.”
Leave a Reply