Positive news emerged from Accor, a leading hotel group, as they reported a strong first quarter in 2024. A key metric, Revenue per Available Room (RevPAR), showed a systemwide increase of 7.6% year-over-year, reaching €66. This growth was driven in part by a notable rise in business travel bookings.
Accor’s Chief Financial Officer, Martine Gerow, highlighted this positive trend during a recent conference call. Business bookings showed a healthy increase in the “low teens” compared to the same period last year. Interestingly, the rise seemed more pronounced for smaller group meetings compared to larger conferences. Gerow noted regional variations likely influenced this trend, depending on the types of events typically held in each location.
While the global picture was positive, Gerow did acknowledge some softening in the United States market, without elaborating on specifics. Despite this, Accor remains confident in its long-term outlook, maintaining its forecast of a steady RevPAR increase of 3% to 4% annually through 2027.
Looking beyond revenue, Accor also demonstrated continued expansion in the first quarter. The company opened a significant number of new hotels, adding over 8,000 rooms to its network. This brings their total portfolio to an impressive 5,613 hotels with a combined room count exceeding 825,000.
