Lifted by the upcoming holiday season, occupancy on the books is rising in Australia’s key hotel markets with Brisbane and Adelaide nearing 70% for New Year’s Eve, according to STR’s Forward STAR.
Australia had been one of the highest-performing countries in 2021 until lockdowns in Sydney and Melbourne pulled national occupancy down to as low as 25.9% on 8 August 2021. With those lockdowns lifted, the country reached as high as 51.1% occupancy on 30 October (Saturday).
Australian accommodation declines for the 2020-21 financial year were worse for capital markets than regional areas, according to STR’s collection of national accommodation statistics through the Australian Accommodation Monitor.
Amid increased COVID-19 cases and lockdowns across the country, Australia’s hotel industry reported lower performance levels, according to preliminary August 2021 data from STR.
After being one of the highest-performing countries during the early portion of 2021, Australia’s hotel occupancy has been on a rapid decline amid the latest COVID-19 lockdowns across the country, according to data from STR through 1 August.
100 Days - That was the amount of time from the end of Victoria’s third lockdown to the beginning of the fourth. During this period, Victoria’s overall accommodation performance saw its greatest shift since pre-pandemic days, with growth largely driven by regional markets.
Most notable, Sydney’s occupancy on the books is down an average of 13.8% when comparing the 28 June data update with the data release from 21 June. Occupancy for the current week ending 3 July is unlikely to exceed the 20% mark, which would be a 50% decline from previous weeks.
Strongly supported by Tourism Australia’s domestic campaign, GlobalData forecasts a record number of domestic trips in the country by 2025: double that seen in 2020 and representing a 14% growth on pre-pandemic levels.
New data from OTA Insight shows coastal Queensland as Australia’s in-demand tourism destination this winter.
Australia has been much more successful than most countries when it comes to COVID-19 case mitigation. As a result, the country has been able to operate with a greater sense of normalcy, as evidenced by sports stadiums packed with fans, restaurants full of customers and travelers moving around the country to stay in hotels.