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After a couple of challenging years in the travel industry, hotel prices worldwide have already soared beyond pre-Covid rates. This is attributed mainly to the fact that after two years of lockdowns and travel restrictions there’s a newfound lust for travel, both for leisure and business purposes, which is leading to a prompt increase in occupancy levels. This presents an opportunity for the hospitality industry to try to regain some of the lost revenue from the long months of the pandemic.   

The global hospitality analytics company STR has recently conducted a study on hotel ADRs (average daily rates) across US and Europe, comparing April-May 2022 rates to April-May 2019 rates. The results show an average 14% increase in ADR in the US and 6% increase in ADR in Europe.

The leading countries that presented the highest ADR increases in Europe were Italy (23%), Ireland (21%), Portugal (18%), Spain (14%) and the UK (12%).

London, which is a leading business oriented destination, reported its highest monthly occupancy since 2020 in May 2022. These high occupancy levels have a double impact – both on hotels availability and of course on the ADR, which has increased by 46% from last year in this location.

Comparing 2022 hotel rates to 2021, Bloomberg research presents a staggering rise of up to 69% on hotel ADR across US central destinations (with an average of 33% increase).
As expected, New York has shown the highest increase of 69% in hotel ADR, Chicago hotels ADR showed an increase of 41%, Miami hotels ADR showed an increase of 55%, and San Francisco hotels ADR showed an increase of 37%.

When you add to the equation the significant rise of flight ticket cost in the past few months (airline fares presented a 18.6% increase in April 2022 alone) – traveling for leisure or business has become much more expensive than we can recall.

The current indication from the combination of the above trends is that travel cost is now considered the biggest inhibitor to travel.  

And yet, regardless of your destination, there are a few things that can be done in order to reduce travel expenses.

Our travel specialists have gathered the top tips that can help you save money when you plan your next trip:

• Book in advance.
  Since we can see a steady increase in travel prices on a weekly basis, we recommend booking in advance in order to guarantee a lower price. If you want to feel more reassured, choose hotels that offer a free-cancellation policy or a flexible rate that allows you to change the dates without penalty, so you can always update your booking if there’s any need.

• Book new hotels.
  Try to scout for hotels that have just recently opened, as sometimes their opening rates might be lower for a limited period of time – and you’ll get a chance to enjoy their new facilities at a very special rate.

• Go outside of the city center.
  If you are staying in a location where there is reliable and convenient public transportation, we recommend you to stay in hotels just outside of the city center. This usually helps you decrease expenses dramatically and can give you higher value for your money. Also, take into account that many business centers in big cities are actually located just outside city centers, so when you travel for business this can be a big plus.

• Match the hotel type to your dates.                                                                                                      As mentioned above – hotels determine their rates according to availability, and you can use this to your advantage. Business oriented hotels for example will usually offer better deals on weekends, and Leisure focused hotels will offer better rates on weekdays.

• Book with Arbitrip!
  Booking with Arbitrip smart platform helps you save at least 15-25% on your travel expenses. Through our user-friendly platform you can access exclusive deals, plus you get to enjoy 24/7 customer service, centralized payment options and access to valuable analysis reports – and all of that free of charge!
  For more information please contact us at [email protected] .

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