U.S. Travel Demand Looks Robust Through 2026

The DJIA was down 108 points, Nasdaq was down 93, the S&P 500 was down 16 points, the 10-year treasury yield was up .03 to 3.768% but lodging stocks were lower. Soho House (SHCO) was up 4%, VCSA was down 8%, and SLNA was up 3%. Hilton and Hyatt were up modestly.

The Baird/STR Hotel Stock Index declined -2.65 in May from April. The Hotel Brand sub-index fell -3.6% while the Hotel REIT sub-index grew 0.8%.

The U.S. Travel Association released its biannual forecast for travel to and within the U.S. through 2026. Domestic leisure travel is expected to remain strong, but with normalized rates of growth (around 2%) in 2023 and 2024. Volume is expected to grow faster YOY than inflation-adjusted spending in 2024 and beyond. Both volume and spending in domestic business travel is expected to grow, albeit more slowly, largely due to economic conditions. While business travel will continue recovering, with both volume and spending at double-digit growth in 2023, it is expected that growth in inflation-adjusted spending will be slower than volume in 2024 and beyond. Business travel volume is not expected to recover to 2019 levels until 2025. The inbound travel forecast was upgraded due to strong demand from the Canadian market, as well as stronger expectations from key overseas markets such as Brazil. YOY, inbound travel volume is projected to grow 31% in 2023 and 18% in 2024, while inflation-adjusted spending is expected to grow 34% in 2023 and 19% in 2024. Volume in this sector is projected to recover by 2025, while inflation-adjusted spending will not recover until 2026. U.S. Travel association cites four key federal policy areas to accelerate growth across travel sectors: Improve the overall air travel experience through the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill. Lower U.S. visitor visa interview wait times, currently exceeding an average of 500 days in top visa-requiring inbound markets. Reduce Customs wait times at U.S. airports and other ports of entry experiencing excessive delays. Increase federal prioritization and focus on travel industry growth. 

KAJ Hospitality signed two separate agreements to acquire five hotels in southern Sioux Falls, marking the first properties owned and managed by KAJ in the market. The five new properties are: The 103-room Hilton Garden Inn Sioux Falls South; the 102-room Courtyard by Marriott Sioux Falls; the 84-studio suite SpringHill Suites by Marriott Sioux Falls; the Residence Inn by Marriott Sioux Falls with 66 apartment-like suites; and the 60-guestrooms Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott Sioux Falls. Each property has an indoor pool, whirlpool and fitness center. The four Marriott properties represent all the hotels located on the Empire Mall campus.

Hilton San Diego Gaslamp Quarter announced the completion of its $22.5 million renovation project. The completely remodeled 286-guestroom hotel offers an array of amenities including a new restaurant concept, a business center, market, fitness center, outdoor heated pool and a terrace complete with fireplaces, giant-sized chess board, checkers, and corn hole. Hilton San Diego Gaslamp Quarter boasts 16,000 square feet of flexible indoor and outdoor event space. 

Snyder Homes is proposing to fill one of its last plots of land in Finney Crossing, in Williston, VT, with an extended-stay hotel. Snyder is looking to split the parcel into two pieces, one for the hotel and the other for a housing development what will be proposed in the future. The over $4 million, four-story hotel would have 115 guestrooms, 111 parking spaces, lobby lounge and breakfast dining area, fitness room, outdoor patio, and bike parking. 

The City of Corpus Christi, Texas is looking to build a connected hotel and convention center complex at the American Bank Center. The city is hoping that both the American Bank Center is renovated and the hotel convention center complex is completed all within the next three years.

The town of Bedford, Virginia signed an agreement with DDay Omstay, LLC to bring a well-known brand of hotel to the town. In exchange for economic development incentives, DDay Omstay, LLC will maintain the chosen hotel brand, which will include at least 85 hotel rooms and a meeting room. The hotel is expected to open in the summer of 2025.

Soho House & Co. is bringing one of its private social clubs to the nearly 150-year-old Wagener Building in downtown Charleston, South Carolina. Soho plans to open the venue in 2024, in the city’s French Quarter, with members-only space on the upper two floors and a public Soho-branded restaurant at ground level, a rooftop bar and a dining area. AJ Capital Investors bought the three story Wagener Building last year for $8.1 million and will continue to own the building with Soho House as a tenant.

Harwood Hospitality Group announced the opening of Hotel Swexan in the heart of the Harwood District of Dallas, Texas. The first hotel project for the company features 134 guestrooms including 8 suites; a grand foyer, five culinary concepts, an infinity edge rooftop pool on the twentieth floor; sixth floor event space; and an eighth floor fitness center and outdoor green space. 

Waikiki Grand Hotel has awarded a contract to Hawaii Americana Realty to manage the front-desk and hotel operations. Hawaii Americana Realty is focused on renovations, streamlining the front deck, and will invest $40,000 to install a new fully-integrated hotel card system, and upgrade furniture and fixtures in its units.

The Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria celebrated the groundbreaking of the Graton Resort & Casino $1 billion property expansion. The expansion project at the Rohnert Park resort in Northern California includes a new five-story hotel wing with over 200 rooms, rooftop restaurant with indoor and outdoor seating, a five-level parking structure with solar panels and a 3,500-seat theater.

Greenville, South Carolina is to be home to a new conference center and hotel project as part of The Greenbelt development, a 325-acre master-planned, mixed-use development. Wildcatter Realty Advisors said the project would be a 10,000 square foot conference center that will be attached to a Courtyard by Marriott, Hilton Garden Inn or similar hotel. The Greenbelt will also include a 300 home residential development, multiple retail and restaurant establishments, hiking and walking trails and more. The construction of the conference center, and the hotel which is being built by Sai Development, would begin by the end of this year or early 2024 and will take about 12 months to complete. 

Deer Valley Resort and the developer of the Mayflower Mountain Resort in Wasatch County, Utah remain in negotiations about what could be a significant Deer Valley role in the operations of the new skiing destination. Mayflower Mountain Resort, an Extell Development Company project that is underway in conjunction with the state Military Installation Development Authority, is located adjacent to the eastern points of Deer Valley. It has seemed likely for decades Deer Valley would ultimately have some sore of involvement in the terrain that will become Mayflower Mountain Resort, but there have been comments in recent months that have provided mounting evidence of that being the case.

Cvent Holding Corp. announced the completion of its acquisition by an affiliate of private equity funds managed by Blackstone for $8.50 per share in cash, representing a total enterprise value of approximately $4.6 billion. The transaction includes a significant minority investment from a wholly owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and participation from existing stockholder Vista Equity Partners. As a result of the transaction, Cvent’s common stock has ceased trading and will be delisted from the Nasdaq Stock Market. 

DSH Hotel Advisors arranged the sale of the 72-room Hampton Inn by Hilton in Spring Hill (a submarket of Tampa) for $9,400,000. DSH Hotel Advisors represented the seller, Kinnari, Inc. and the buyer QDI 4, LLC, a QDI USA Developments Group company. DSH held the exclusive listing with the seller.

Personnel Move

Travel & Leisure Co. announced Amandine Robin will join the company as Chief Brand and Communications Officer, serving on the company’s Executive Committee. In this new role, Robin will lead the company’s brand, communications, and digital marketing programs as the organization executes on the expansion of its multi-brand strategy. Robin most recently served as Chief Communications Officer for the North America region at Pernod Ricard.