January 7th, 2010
Orlando FL Hotels
I recently caught up with a GM of three hotels here in Orlando. I said Bill what is your prognostication for the lodging business for Orlando FL Hotels for 2010. His response was like most that I have queried.
They all believe that 2010 will start off on a high note. They state the first quarter will actually show significant improvement (up 10%) over the corresponding period of 2009. They also believe that nightly rates will inch up by as much as 5% as more leisure travelers escape to the warmer weather of Florida.
As Bill said, the domestic market is what we are concentrating on. Americans are more resilient in difficult times. They still like to vacation with the family and will spend reasonable money to have a good time. He said he envisioned much less competition from foreign travel due to the sagging dollar.
“As a people we are conditioned in the states to look for a good deal….”value” is the name of the game and that will be the case for 2010. There will be significant leisure travel for Florida and in particular in Orlando we are forecasting a greater demand than last year. However, we are making these statements based on the economy inching its way out of the recession and no major terrorist threats on the home front”….he said.
Major climatic weather is not figured in our equation either. Bill has read as most prognosticators that the hurricane season for 2010 maybe more troubling in the late summer and fall this year over last. If this be the case, the Orlando lodging market will be hurt in the third quarter.
All in all…what he said that might effect the leisure travel for you in 2010: the first quarter (January through March) will be up 10% with rates up at least 5%. The remainder of the year will depend to a great extent on the overall economy, the climate and the threats to our society.