Inbound leisure tourism likely to create a surge in hotel rates
Thursday, August 9, 2012
An increase in demand for inbound leisure travel is expected to drive up U.S. hotel prices, according to Travel Market Report. China is projected to send 100 million tourists abroad each year, giving the U.S. a predicted 10 million additional visitors per year from China alone. Other growing countries such as Brazil and India will also add to the expanding U.S. travel economy.
The average Chinese leisure traveler stays in the U.S. for one week, according to Marriott Hotels & Resorts CEO Arne Sorenson. Based on current statistics, Chinese leisure travelers alone will need an additional 70 million hotel rooms per year. In a time of otherwise flat economic growth, a lack of newly constructed hotels will likely cause hotel rates to skyrocket.
Expanding GDPs in countries like China, India and Brazil are not the only cause of the surge in inbound tourism. The Corporation for Travel Promotion, established by the Travel Promotion Act of 2010, comprised the U.S.'s first marketing effort to promote inbound U.S. travel. The project, which does business as Brand USA, hopes to increase domestic profits from inbound U.S. tourism.