Data suggests hoteliers in top markets for Thanksgiving travel should prepare for a record number of guests this holiday weekend.

1. Data suggests hoteliers in top markets for Thanksgiving travel should
prepare for a record number of guests this holiday weekend.
© 2016 STR, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
illustrations: annamarie hudson
Source: AAA, STR
62.8%luxury hotels
48.2%economy hotels
7.6%
89.4%
3%
55.4%Boston, MA
83.8%Oahu Island, HI
1.9%increase over 2015
50.8%occupancy
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Data suggests Thanksgiving guests
open up their wallets, as luxury hotels
saw the highest occupancy on
Thanksgiving 2015 among the STR
chain scales (62.8%), while economy
hotels reported just 48.2%. Average
daily rate for luxury hotels last
year was $334.47 and RevPAR
was $210.10.
Most Thanksgiving weekend travelers
(89.4%) will drive to and from their
holiday destinations, according to AAA,
while 7.6% will fly and 3% will go by
boat or other means.
In 2015, the highest occupancy market
on Thanksgiving among the top 25
markets was Oahu Island, Hawaii,
with 83.8%. That’s about as far as you
can get from the location of the first
Thanksgiving in the U.S., while
Boston, the closest top market,
sits in the middle of the pack
at 55.4% occupancy.
During the long Thanksgiving holiday
weekend (Wednesday to Sunday) this
year, 48.7 million Americans will
travel 50 miles or more from
home, according to AAA. That’s
an increase of 1 million
(or 1.9%) over 2015.
Since 2000, U.S. hotels have had an
average of 50.8% occupancy on
Thanksgiving. In 2015, Average
daily rate reached $109.46 and
revenue per available room
was measured at $60.15 on the
holiday, according to HNN’s
parent company STR.