Survey: 64% of Independent Hoteliers Expect Doors to be Open by August

SAN DIEGO—A majority of independent hoteliers expect to be open by August, according to a survey from Cloudbeds, a provider of cloud-based software solutions for the hospitality industry.

The sentiment survey received responses from more than 1,000 independent owners and operators across 65 countries. The goal of the survey is to equip Cloudbeds’ customer base with key market level indicators that will be integral to decisions they make as part of their recovery plans moving forward. The survey incorporated everything from the timing of restriction liftings to demand channels.

In addition to the sentiment survey, the company released a market insights dashboard to help customers anticipate demand and plan for the future by observing occupancy, booking and cancellation trends on a country-by-country basis.

The majority, 64%, said they expected to be open by late August, indicating that the upcoming summer months could be saved and serve as the launchpad toward a long-term full recovery for independent lodging properties. Additional key indicators from the survey included the fact that 32% of respondents are currently fully open.

Anticipating the next 12 months, compared to pre-COVID-19, the responses are consistent with emerging demand data and growing optimism that the industry will continue on the path to returning to 2019 levels over the next 18 months:

Reservations trends:

    • 43% expected to have more local travelers visiting their properties than in the prior year and 22% expected to have about the same.
    • 35% expected to have fewer local travelers visiting their properties than in the prior year.
    • Regarding guests from international destinations, the vast majority, 78%, expected to have fewer than the year before; however, further changes to restrictions would change this sentiment.

Regional trends:

    • North American, Central Asian and Oceania properties responded with moderate optimism, expecting to increase their reservations through the balance of 2020.
    • Latin American, European and Southeast Asian properties responded with a more reserved outlook, not expecting their reservations to increase until early 2021.
    • The global average for optimism remained neutral.

Trends by property type

    • Boutique hotels, flat hotels, campgrounds and vacation rentals have a mostly positive outlook.
    • Independent hotels, motels and B&Bs have a neutral to a positive outlook.
    • Hostels, resorts and group-oriented properties have a mostly negative outlook.

Direct bookings represented 43% of expected reservations. OTA reservations were estimated to account for 49%.