"Hotel Occupancy On The Rise, But Rates Still In Decline"

Hotel Occupancy On The Rise, But Rates Still In Decline
http://www.btnonline.com/businesstravelnews/headlines/hotel_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1004089741

About hotels, but interesting:

MAY 10, 2010 -- Occupancy rebounded for large, multibrand hotel companies in the first quarter of 2010, but rate declines continued across the tiers.

Marriott International reported an uptick in group travel, particularly association business, during the quarter. President and COO Arne Sorenson said group room nights within Marriott were up 1 percent compared with the first quarter of 2009, but up 10 percent in the last month of the quarter. "While corporate business remains soft, association meeting attendance took off," Sorenson said. "Association room nights rose 15 percent in the quarter and 50 percent in our third period."