Hyatt Hotels boosted by ‘strong’ Q2 business travel bookings

Hyatt Hotels has been buoyed by the “strong performance” of business and group travel during the second quarter of 2024.

The US-based company achieved revenue per available room (RevPAR) of $149.31in Q2, which was a 4.7 per cent increase over the same period last year.

Occupancy was also up by 2.4 percentage points to 72.9 per cent in the quarter, while the average daily rate (ADR) ticked up by 1.1 per cent to $204.73.

In Europe, Hyatt’s hotels performed even more strongly with ADR up by 3.6 per cent year-on-year to $253.08, while RevPAR shot up by 10.5 per cent to $188.09 and occupancy rose by 4.6 points to 74.3 per cent over the same period.

Mark Hoplamazian, Hyatt’s CEO, called the Q2 results “solid” and showed the company’s “continued momentum” as it seeks more growth.

“Our pipeline reached a new record of 130,000 rooms, up 9 per cent year-over-year, reflecting strong developer interest in our brands,” he added. “We saw continued growth of the World of Hyatt loyalty programme, with membership increasing by 21 per cent year-over-year to a record 48 million members.

“These achievements demonstrated the strength of our asset-light earnings model, which is designed to deliver strong free cash flow and enhance shareholder value.”

In its earning statement, Hyatt said the Q2 results “reflected strong performance in business transient and group travel”, particularly in the US.

“Travel within Europe remains strong driven by inbound travel from the United States and large one-time events,” added the company.

Hyatt’s revenue for the quarter was flat year-on-year at $1.7 billion, but net profit rose from $68 million in Q2 of 2023 to $359 million this year – mainly due to the proceeds of selling real estate. Park Hyatt Zurich in Switzerland, plus Hyatt Regency San Antonio Riverwalk and Hyatt Regency Green Bay in the US were all sold during the quarter.