Hotel Industry Recovery Continuing With Luxury Hotels Leading the Way

[Above: Revenue per available room for the week ended May 8, pct. increase over corresponding week in 2009. Chart by Smith Travel Research]

As business travel picks up, U.S. hotels are starting to recover from the worst slump in hotel industry history.

For the week ended May 8, the overall domestic hotel industry reported a 5.6 percent gain, compared with the corresponding week in 2009, in revenue per available room. RevPAR is the standard measurement of a hotel's operating performance.

The data are from Smith Travel Research.

As has been the case for over a month, the luxury hotel segment far outperformed the rest of the industry, as travelers are feeling a little less anxious about high-end spending.

Luxury hotels reported a 14.6 percent increase in RevPAR for the week and an 11.8 percent increase in occupancy. (Overall, the hotel industry reported a 5.6 percent increase in occupancy).

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