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Business Conditions Survey: Traveller accommodation industries
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Canadian hoteliers were signalling a modest improvement in the accommodation industry in the fourth quarter of 2007. Despite the appreciating Canadian dollar and labour shortages, respondents were expecting increases in the number of room nights booked, average room rates, occupancy rates, the number of corporate travellers, and the number of hours worked by employees.
The percentage of hoteliers who expected the number of room nights booked to increase was slightly higher than in the third quarter survey; the balance of opinion went from -5 to +2. One in four respondents (25%) expected a higher number of room night bookings for the fourth quarter compared with the same period in 2006, as opposed to 23% who foresaw the number of bookings declining.
More respondents anticipated higher occupancy rates than those who expected rates to decline. Hotel owners continued to be positive about average daily room rates, expecting rates to be higher for the remainder of the year. While 37% expected increases, only 13% foresaw a drop, resulting in a balance of opinion of +24.
Furthermore, hotel operators were indicating a rise in the number of corporate travellers in the fourth quarter. A quarter of hotel managers (25%) were optimistic about an increase in the number of corporate travellers, compared to less than one fifth (19%) who cited the number of corporate travellers to fall.
The outlook in terms of the number of hours worked was positive. Over one in five hotel operators (22%) expected the number of hours worked by their employees to increase in the fourth quarter, compared to only 16% of hoteliers who stated that the number of hours worked would decrease.
Of the major business impediments, exchange rate fluctuations and shortages of unskilled and skilled labour remained of concern to hoteliers. The exchange rate fluctuation was cited by 45% of hotel operators. The shortages of unskilled and skilled labour reached new highs of 39% and 34% respectively, particularly from respondents in Western Canada.
Note: The voluntary survey of approximately 1,330 businesses, which consist of hotels and motels, was conducted in September and assesses the outlook of key indicators compared with the same period a year earlier. The balance of opinion is determined by subtracting the proportion of hoteliers who expect a decrease in the upcoming quarter from the proportion who expect an increase. Results are based on survey questionnaires sent to traveller accommodation providers and are weighted by their operating revenues. Consequently, larger businesses have a correspondingly larger impact on the results than smaller businesses.
The Business Conditions Survey for the Traveller Accommodation Industries is made possible with the support of industry partners, the Canadian Tourism Commission, Tourism Ontario, Tourism Saskatchewan, the Nova Scotia Department of Tourism, Culture and Heritage, Industry Canada, and Parks Canada.
Available on CANSIM: tables 351-0004 and 351-0005.
Definitions, data sources and methods: survey number 5050.
For more information, to enquire about the concepts, methods or data quality of this release, or to obtain the survey background paper, contact Konstantine Anastasopoulos (613-951-8354; 613-951-6696; Konstantine.Anastasopoulos@statcan.gc.ca), Service Industries Division.
Table(s).
