COVID-19 has ravaged the hospitality sector and fundamentally transformed it in 2020. According to STR, hotel occupancy in the USA from April 5th to the 11th was down nearly 70% year-over-year. In Europe, hotels are expected to see a 37% decline in revenue per available room (RevPAR) in 2020 on account of their massive losses in occupancy. International tourism, one of the integral sources of revenue for the sector, is expected to decline by 20-30% globally, down from an estimated growth of 3% to 4%, as forecast in early January 2020. This could translate into a loss of $300 to $450 billion in spending by international visitors.
None of this is surprising or unexpected given the new realities brought on by COVID-19. What is surprising and interesting, though, is how hotels have changed to deal with the new realities and how they are preparing to deal with an economy that is set to reopen soon. This report will highlight both these changes and preparations.
