September 2018: an Indian summer for European hotels

European hotel performances are improving for Fall 2018, with some countries even recording very strong growth. Overall, compared to September 2017, RevPAR increased by +3.3% and grew in all segments, despite a slight slowdown on the upscale market. It should be noted that results are not homogeneous: the midscale and budget categories recorded higher results this month, mainly due to an increase in their average daily rates (up by 5.6% and 2.7%, respectively). On the other hand, upscale and economy properties saw their RevPAR grow without any significant increase in their occupancy rate. 

Results Year-to-Date are also positive, with growth in RevPAR by +3.9% since the beginning of the year. The upscale, the lowest performing segment this month, with +2.1% growth, shows the strongest growth YTD (+4.6%), driven by an increase in the occupancy rate (+1.1 points) and an increase in average daily rates (+2.9%).

It is quite notable that positive growth indicators are not observed throughout the area. Three countries recorded double-digit growth in RevPAR compared to September 2017: Hungary (17.1%), Austria (13.3%) and France (10.9%). Results were mainly due to an increase in their average daily rate, respectively 16.6% for Hungary, 13.3% for Austria, and 8.9% for France. In addition, Greece experienced significant growth (RevPAR: +8.5%) and continuity with respect to the summer season, with a sharp increase in average daily rates (+11%).

Denmark illustrates the exception that confirms the rule: its RevPAR is driven by its occupancy rate, on a rebound of 3.5 pts, the best performance for this indicator across all European countries combined, despite a drop in average daily rates by -2.9%.

Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium seem to be continuing at a steady pace, with RevPARs of +2.6%, 0.7% and 0% respectively, reinforcing the attractiveness and stability of these countries in terms of...