WASHINGTON–Credit unions hopeful the upcoming holiday season might goose their card volumes as consumers travel more will be disappointed in the findings of one new survey.
According to a national survey commissioned by the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA). many Americans are not expected to travel during the holidays. Results show 72% of Americans are unlikely to travel for Thanksgiving and 69% are unlikely to travel for Christmas.
It’s not just challenging news for credit unions, but for hotels and the lodging industry in general, the association reminded.
And those industries aren’t alone. According to the AHLA, business travel has been even more affected. Only 8% of Americans say they have taken an overnight business trip since March, and just 19% of respondents who are currently employed—or 8% of all adults—expect to travel for business within the next six months. Sixty-two percent (62%) of employed Americans have no plans to stay in a hotel for business.
Other Findings
The survey of 2,200 adults was conducted November 2-4, 2020 by Morning Consult on behalf of AHLA. Among the other findings:
- 32% of respondents have taken an overnight vacation or leisure trip since March
- 21% of Americans say they are likely to travel for Thanksgiving, 24% are likely to travel for Christmas
- Looking ahead to next year, 24% are likely to travel for spring break
- 44% say their next hotel stay for vacation or leisure travel will be a year or more from now or they have no plans to stay in a hotel
Effect on Hotels
The association reported hotel occupancy rates partially rebounded from record lows in April, but rates have continued to decline since Labor Day. According to STR, nationwide hotel occupancy was 44.4% for the week ending October 31, compared to 62.6% the same week last year. Occupancy in urban markets is just 35.6%, down from 71.8% one year ago.
As a result of the significant drop in travel, more than half of hotels report they have less than half of their typical, pre-crisis staff working full time currently. Without further governmental assistance, 74% of hotels said they would be forced into further layoffs. Business and group travel are not expected to reach 2019 peak demand levels again until 2023.
As a result of the sharp drop in travel demand from COVID-19, state and local tax revenue from hotel operations is estimated to drop by $16.8 billion in 2020.