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San Francisco Hotel Workers Remain on Strike

Hotel workers in San Francisco are continuing to picket outside the Grand Hyatt hotel in Union Square Saturday, the third and final day of the work stoppage.

Hundreds of workers are outside the building on the 300 block of Stockton Street near Union Square, carrying signs and chanting.

Members of the Unite Here Local 2 say hotel management is proposing unreasonable reductions in health and retirement benefits.

Officials with the Grand Hyatt San Francisco released a statement saying that they were disappointed that "after only five bargaining sessions the union has decided to engage in disruptive and counterproductive action instead of trying to achieve progress at the negotiating table."

The union represents about 12,000 employees in the hospitality industry in San Francisco and on the Peninsula, including room cleaners, cooks, food servers, bellmen, bartenders and dishwashers. The workers are expected to return to work Sunday morning, but are calling on customers to honor an ongoing boycott of the hotel. Union workers at other San Francisco hotels remain on the job, but job actions elsewhere still remain a possibility.

Negotiations have been going on for more than two months, and workers have been without a contract since Aug. 14.

RAK Tourism to unveil key projects at WTM

Ras Al Khaimah Tourism is set to showcase its latest hotel and hospitality offerings and projects at the World Travel Market (WTM), which begins on Monday in London.

RAK Tourism's attendance at the global trade event is a key strategic move that will support ongoing marketing campaigns in European markets, which collectively account for up to 75 per cent of the total number of visitors in Ras Al Khaimah, said a senior official.

The hotel industry has been one of the most important growth areas of the Ras Al Khaimah economy as occupancy levels continue to hover above 90 per cent, while the number of hotel guests has achieved a healthy growth trend, reaching 10 per cent in 2008.

The hotels that will be featured by RAK Tourism at the WTM include Al Hamra Fort and Beach Resort, Khatt Spring Hotel and Spa, Acacia Hotel, Hilton Ras Al Khaimah, Hilton Beach Resort and Spa, and Cove Rotana.

Banyan Tree Al Wadi and Palace Hotel Ras Al Khaimah, which will be opened soon, will also be showcased during the travel trade show.

Dr Khater Massaad, CEO of RAK Investment Authority said: 'The World Travel Market will provide excellent global exposure to Ras Al Khaimah's hospitality sector and will give us leverage to pursue new business and investment opportunities with leading players in the global travel industry.'

'Our participation will also reinforce RAK's presence in key European markets, which collectively account for the highest number of visitors in the emirate. RAK Tourism has worked closely with top hotel operators in the emirate to develop a truly compelling presentation of the excellent hospitality offerings and world-class tourism infrastructure.'

Highlighting its status as a major tourist destination, Ras Al Khaimah has witnessed a substantial increase in the number of hotels being developed in the emirate, including nearly two dozen 5-star hotels and several more premium hotel and hotel apartments that are poised to start operations within the next five years.

Held annually in London, World Travel Market offers a unique opportunity for international travel professionals and representatives from various related industries to meet, network, negotiate and conduct business under one roof.

The four-day event also provides exclusive insights into the challenges and opportunities in the global travel industry, helping trade visitors to boost their competitive advantage and stay abreast of the latest developments.-TradeArabia News Service

How OTAs boost bookings on your own Web site

The Choice Hotels-Expedia brouhaha of recent weeks has shined a scorching spotlight on the fickle relationship between hotel companies and online travel agencies. Call it the industry’s version of a celebrity breakup scandal. But while the focus of debate has centered on last-room availability and other contractual terms surrounding room bookings, there’s a fundamental component of this precarious affiliation that’s gone largely ignored: visibility.

The OTAs’ primary purpose might be to generate room bookings, but sites like Priceline, Orbitz and the aforementioned Expedia also create consumer awareness of your product as would an advertisement in a magazine. That awareness then can translate into direct bookings on your hotel Web site, phone reservation lines and other channels outside of the third-party reservation fraternity.

Chris Anderson, who serves as assistant professor at the Cornell School of Hotel Administration, calls this the “billboard effect.” And as luck would have it, he’s just published a report discussing the impact it has on reservation volume.

In the report (which you can download for free here), Anderson describes a pseudo-experiment he conducted from October 2008 through December 2008. During the three-month period, he cycled four JLM Hotel properties on and off Expedia for periods of seven to 11 days. At the end of the trial, each hotel had been displayed on the site for 40 days and not displayed for 40 days. He then measured the average daily reservations booked through sites excluding Expedia during the 80-day period:

"Since the goal was to measure the impact of the OTA display on non-OTA reservation volume (rather than the total impact of the OTA listing), I eliminated the actual Expedia.com bookings. This means that the reservations shown in Exhibit 1 are those that were made through channels other than Expedia during the time of the test. In short, listing on Expedia created a lift of between 7.5 percent and 26 percent for these non-Expedia reservations."

Property	Average daily reservations when displayed on Expedia	Average daily reservations when not displayed on Expedia	Percentage increase
Branded hotel 1	39.4	36.6	7.5%
Branded hotel 2	54.8	49.7	9.1%
Branded hotel 3	39.1	34.2	14.1%
Independent hotel	28.2	22.3	26%

The large variance in incremental reservations from listing on Expedia involves interference from the hotels’ chain connections, which is explained in greater detail in the report. For our purposes here, it’s important to focus on the fact that these results seem to confirm the billboard effect, or, as Anderson states in the report, the “lift in reservations made through channels other than online travel agents that is created by listing on the OTA.”

Could this apparent benefit in listing room inventory on OTAs earn them the favor of embittered companies like Choice? Unlikely. But as the debate wears on, it’s something for the industry to consider nonetheless.

U.S. Travel Industry to Add 90,000 American Jobs in 2010

Modest Increases in Travel Volume, Spending Demonstrate Industry's Unique Ability to Quickly Create Employment Opportunities

6 November 2009

The U.S. Travel Association today announced that projected modest 2010 increases in leisure, business and international inbound travel will enable the industry to add nearly 90,000 American jobs. Leisure travel is expected to rise 2.0 percent, business travel is projected to increase by 2.5 percent and international inbound travel will increase by nearly 3.0 percent. These job gains come on the heels of 400,000 combined travel industry job losses in 2008 and 2009.

"The travel industry shares President Obama's goal of putting Americans back to work. Our industry is uniquely capable of adapting to economic upswings and quickly adding tens of thousands of jobs," said Roger Dow, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association. "What we announce today is based upon modest increases in travel. Given its immense potential, we call on the Administration and Members of Congress to build a plan for economic recovery that drives significant increases in travel."

A federal economic recovery plan to significantly increase travel and create jobs would include:

• Passage of the Travel Promotion Act to encourage millions of travelers to visit the United States;
• Improvements in the visa and entry processes that have largely driven the decline in overseas travel to the United States post-9/11;
• Funding for a "NextGen" air traffic control system that will limit flight delays, cancellations and negative impact on the environment; and,
• Encouragement of meetings, events and incentive programs through tax deductions and other mechanisms.

The travel industry employs 7.7 million Americans, supporting out of every eight non-farm jobs in the United States.

Domestic Travel Overview

Domestic leisure travel is expected to increase 2 percent in 2010, with a corresponding increase in leisure travel spending of nearly 5 percent. Domestic business travel volume will grow 2.5 percent next year and business travel spending will increase 4 percent.

"Projected growth in leisure travel is an indicator of rising consumer confidence and disposable income," said Dr. Suzanne Cook, senior vice president of research for the U.S. Travel Association. "Following a difficult 2009, businesses have a heightened focus on the value and bottom-line benefits of travel. We expect to see a slight increase in business travel next year based in part on pent-up demand for face-to-face meetings that drive growth and productivity."

International Inbound Travel

International inbound travel will increase nearly 3.0 percent in 2010; however, growth in overseas travel (excluding Canada and Mexico) will remain stable at about 1 percent. Overseas travel visitation in 2010 will remain below 2000 levels (23.5 million versus 26.0 million, respectively). The concern about the lack of substantial growth next year from this market is that overseas travelers contribute significantly more to the U.S. economy, spending an average of $4,500 per person, per trip compared to about $900 per person, per trip for Canadian and Mexican travelers.

The U.S. Travel Association's industry forecast can be viewed here. The current Travel Price Index can be viewed here.

The U.S. Travel Association is the national, non-profit organization representing all components of the $770 billion travel industry. U.S. Travel's mission is to promote and facilitate increased travel to and within the United States. For more information, visit www.ustravel.org.

Contact

Cathy Keefe
Manager, Media Relations
Phone: 202 408-2183
Fax: 202 408-1255
Email: ckeefe@tia.org

Organization

U.S. Travel Association (USTA)
www.ustravel.org
1100 New York Avenue, NW, Suite 450,
USA - Washington, DC 20005-3934
Phone: 202-408-8422
Fax: 202-408-1255
Email: info@ustravel.org

STR reports US performance for week ending 31 October

The U.S. hotel industry posted declines in all three key performance measurements during the week of 25-31 October 2009, according to data from STR.

In year-over-year measurements, the industry’s occupancy fell 7.2 percent to end the week at 51.8 percent. Average daily rate dropped 7.2 percent to finish the week at US$98.99. Revenue per available room for the week decreased 13.8 percent to finish at US$51.28.

Among the Top 25 Markets, Anaheim-Santa Ana, California, experienced the largest occupancy increase, up 9.1 percent to 65.5 percent. Four other markets reported occupancy increases of more than 5 percent: Oahu Island, Hawaii (+8.7 percent to 75.0 percent); Boston, Massachusetts (+7.2 percent to 71.4 percent); Denver, Colorado (+6.2 percent to 58.0 percent); and New York, New York (+5.4 percent to 85.1 percent). Houston, Texas, posted the largest occupancy decrease, falling 29.8 percent to 56.9 percent.

New Orleans, Louisiana, reported the largest ADR increase, up 5.3 percent to US$129.03, followed by San Diego, California, with a 3.5-percent increase to US$141.12. Four markets experienced ADR decreases of more than 15 percent: New York (-17.2 percent to US$265.59); Phoenix, Arizona (-16.7 percent to US$102.52); Miami-Hialeah, Florida (-15.4 percent to US$125.57); and Chicago, Illinois (-15.3 percent to US$122.03).

New Orleans led the RevPAR increases, up 5.0 percent to US$86.15, followed by San Diego (+4.7 percent to US$89.41), Boston (+4.6 percent to US$111.80), and Oahu Island (+4.5 percent to US$114.94). Houston experienced the largest RevPAR decrease, falling 39.2 percent to US$53.24. Three other markets posted RevPAR decreases of more than 25 percent: Chicago (-26.0 percent to US$70.31); Miami-Hialeah (-25.8 percent to US$75.99); and Nashville, Tennessee (-25.7 percent to US$47.70).

About STR & STR Global: For more than 20 years, Smith Travel Research has been the recognized leader for lodging industry benchmarking and research. Smith Travel Research and STR Global offer monthly, weekly, and daily STAR benchmarking reports to more than 37,000 hotel clients, representing nearly 5 million rooms worldwide. STR is headquartered in Hendersonville, Tennessee, and STR Global is based in London. For more information, visit www.strglobal.com or www.HotelNewsNow.com.

Related Document

US performance for week ending 31 October

The U.S. hotel industry posted declines in all three key performance measurements during the week of 25-31 October 2009, according to data from STR. In year-over-year measurements, the industry’s occupancy fell 7.2 percent to end the week at 51.8 percent. Average daily rate dropped 7.2 percent to finish the week at US$98.99. Revenue per available room for the week decreased 13.8 percent to finish at US$51.28.

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Organization

Smith Travel Research
www.strglobal.com
735 E. Main St.
USA - Hendersonville, TN 37075
Phone: (615) 824-8664

Fax: (615) 824-3848