Revenue from worldwide business travel at IHG Hotels & Resorts rose by 6 per cent year-on-year and was also 3 per cent higher than in the third quarter of 2019.
“Business revenue is above 2019 levels and the further normalisation of global working habits has seen the return of more meetings, conferences and events,” said IHG’s CEO Elie Maalouf during an earnings call.
As has been the case throughout 2023 and across hotel companies, the post-pandemic recovery primarily has been driven by rising rates. IHG's systemwide third-quarter average daily rate (ADR) increased 4.1 per cent year-on-year to $130.20, helping to increase revpar (revenue per available room) by 10.5 per cent to $93.22.
IHG’s systemwide third-quarter occupancy increased 4.1 percentage points to 71.6 per cent, a figure largely driven by a 14.1 per cent increase in China, which is rebounding from the depths of its Covid-19 lockdowns after finally reopening its border in January.
Hotel occupancy in the EMEAA region (Europe, Middle East, Asia and Africa) reached 73 per cent in the quarter – up by 4.7 points on last year but still 4 points lower than during the same quarter of 2019.
Average daily rate in EMEAA rose by 8.6 per cent year-on-year and was also nearly 24 per cent higher than in 2019. Revpar also went up by 15.9 per cent compared to last year. IHG’s revpar in continental Europe was 31 per cent higher than during 2019 and up by 18 per cent in the UK over the same timeframe.
In the Americas, occupancy increased 0.7 percentage points to 72.2 per cent, while ADR rose 3.1 per cent to $140.28 and revpar increased 4.1 per cent to $101.26.
"As well as year-on-year revpar growth in each of our three regions, it was also pleasing to see rooms revenue growth for each of leisure, business and group travel," added Maalouf said in a statement.
IHG has nearly 1,980 hotels in its development pipeline, totalling more than 292,000 rooms – this latter figure is up by 5.1 per cent compared to last year.