Dive Brief:
- Amid ongoing economic uncertainty, mountain destinations across the Western U.S. experienced a decline in international tourism in May, which subsequently impacted resort occupancy, according to a DestiMetrics report obtained by Hotel Dive. DestiMetrics tracks performance data for roughly 28,000 lodging units in 17 mountain destinations across Colorado, Utah, California, Nevada, Wyoming, Montana and Idaho.
- Bookings from Canada were down 55.5% year over year in May across Western mountain destinations, while bookings from Western Europe were down 35.5%, per DestiMetrics. Additionally, there was a 5.4% year-over-year decline in bookings from Mexico. May occupancy for Western mountain destinations was down 0.7% year over year.
- While there were some positive growth indicators for Western mountain destinations in May, pacing for July and August is “clearly underperforming,” causing concern, according to Tom Foley, senior vice president of business intelligence for DestiMetrics’ parent company, Inntopia. Nationwide, international visitation is being impacted by recent government actions.
Dive Insight:
While Western U.S. mountain destinations saw international bookings decline in May, domestic bookings were up 1.7% year over year in the month, according to the report. The overall booking pace during May for the full summer, though, was down 7.1% year over year. The May results come as economic uncertainty mounts, according to Foley.
“The financial and political turbulence of the past few months continues to have an impact on bookings — even with some good economic news and an uptick in consumer confidence during May,” Foley said in a statement. “The Memorial Day weekend, the unofficial kick-off to the summer season, was pretty ‘so-so’ — as expected.”
A larger concern, Foley noted, is that “the two busiest months of the summer,” July and August, are on pace to underperform. July occupancy for the Western U.S. is pacing down 5.1% year over year, while occupancy for August and September is down 0.9% and 4.7%, respectively, per the report.
Nationwide, hotel bookings for July and August are down from 2024, Amanda Hite, president of CoStar-owned STR, shared at the NYU International Hospitality Investment Forum earlier this month.
A dip in international tourism is expected to impact the U.S. in 2025, with the World Travel & Tourism Council reporting last month that the country is on track to lose $12.5 billion in international visitor spending this year.
A lack of international traveler confidence, exacerbated by the Trump administration’s actions, is driving the anticipated loss, WTTC CEO Julia Simpson detailed.
Hotel CEOs noted changes to travel demand and booking behavior during Q1 2025 earnings calls. MGM Resorts International and Caesars Entertainment, specifically, reported a decline in Canadian leisure guests in Q1.
“[A]s the volatility continues and consumers remain cautious as they await what impact tariffs will have on inflation, lodging properties will have to continue with diligent and balanced rate management and re-visit past successes with value-added strategies,” Foley said.
The Western U.S. mountain region, he said, “appears to be shifting to a philosophy of quality over quantity, choosing to attract fewer guests but targeting those willing to pay a bit more to drive revenue.”
