This time, the ever-positive evolution of average daily rates could not make up for the drop and the final result was a decrease in the Revenue Per Available Room, RevPAR by 1.1%. The drop in occupancy was felt most in the economy hotel supply. This is usual during the summer because domestic business clientele tends to desert this type of accommodation, but the drops by 2.2 to 4.6 points express the most significant impact of the economic crisis. The more upscale hotel segment continues to benefit from the French appeal it exercises over foreign clientele, but the engine is losing its strength. The shift of the period of Ramadan made Paris’s and the Cote d’Azur’s very upscale properties end August on a high note, which could be felt across the national average. The return of fine weather to the entire country managed to revive leisure activity a bit. Contrary to the month of July, French regions acted as a buffer limiting a more significant drop in occupancy and the RevPAR. Globally, with a drop in OR by 1.8 point, the regions were able to maintain and improve their average daily rates by more than 3.6%. Outside Paris and the Paris region, the change in the RevPAR in France remained positive by 1%. But the weight of Paris and its region succeeded in making the change curve of the RevPAR swing into the red. It must be remembered that the capital experienced an exceptional August 2011 with the European Cardiology congress with 30,000 participants that boosted average rates in Paris and the Greater Paris Region. It is normal for the drop in occupancy to be higher than 2.5 points and for average daily rates to drop by close to 5% in the Ile-de-France. Paris proper experienced less of a drop, but...