Despite being tossed on the waves of the European economic crisis at times, the German economy continues to weather the storm, as reflected in the positive indicators on the country’s hospitality sector. Even though economic growth is slowing down, German GDP still rose 0.2% in the 3rd quarter. This growth is translating into the business sector, which is further good news for hoteliers in Germany, as the business sector supplies the better part of their clientele. According to one Munich-based institution, Germany’s business climate index grew 1.4% in October. Likewise, Germany’s DAX is remaining flat while other European indices are mostly down. Globally, Germany saw a 0.8 point increase in Occupancy Rates. This was mostly carried by the upper scale segment, with a 1.2 point OR increase. This makes sense within the German context, as Germany is Europe’s leading MICE location, second worldwide only behind the United States. However, despite high occupancy, the upper scale hotels are not where we find the highest RevPAR. Whereas the upper scale does show RevPAR growth as compared to last year, at 4.2%, the most profitable segment is the mid-scale segment at 5.7% growth. In Berlin especially, one of four leading MICE cities in the world, the upper scale segment has proved most profitable. RevPAR growth within that segment was at 8%. From an industry standpoint, this shows that upper scale is probably a safe investment. Occupancy Rates as compared to the month prior show this pattern inverted. While it did grow as compared to last year, 4-star occupancy from October to November is the only point of contraction for German tourism statistics. Instead, occupancy in economy scale hotels has grown from October to November. This inversion may be due to higher room rates around Oktoberfest deterring local travel in hotels, while still attracting...