STR: U.S. hotel performance declines month over month

As the summer leisure travel surge subsided, the U.S. hotel industry reported performance declines from August to July, according to monthly data from STR. For August, hotel occupancy reached 63.2 percent, down 11.3 percent from August 2019 and down from 69.6 percent this July. 

Related: STR: U.S. hotels report all-time monthly highs in July

Average daily rate reached $137.57, up 3.7 percent from the month two years previous, while revenue per available room was $86.88, (down 8.1 percent). In July 2021, average daily rate was $143.30, up 6 percent from 2019, while revenue per available room was $99.71, up 0.2 percent.

Top Markets

Among the top 25 markets, Norfolk/Virginia Beach, Va., reported the highest occupancy level (74.2 percent), which was still down 5.3 percent from the market’s 2019 benchmark.

None of the top 25 markets saw an occupancy increase over 2019. Markets with the lowest occupancy for the month included New Orleans (42.7 percent) and Orlando (52.2 percent).

San Francisco/San Mateo reported the steepest decline in occupancy when compared with 2019, down 40.3 percent to 53.3 percent.

Overall, the top 25 markets showed lower occupancy but higher ADR than all other markets.