Edmonton hotel bookings may drop four per cent in 2009

[DebraW]

Edmonton hotel bookings may drop four per cent this year

By Dave Cooper, edmontonjournal.com
February 4, 2009 11:01 AM

Hotel room bookings are expected to drop four per cent in Edmonton this year as the tourism industry struggles with the global economic crisis.

“We are using a forecasting model which sees this, but under the circumstances I think if we can hold the loss to four per cent we’ll have done darn well,” said Ken Fiske, vice-president of tourism and economic development for the Edmonton Economic Development Corp.

Fiske said Wednesday that regional tourism has always been Edmonton’s strength.

“B.C., Saskatchewan and the North, that’s the market that is going to sustain us through this downturn.”

Link:
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/Trave...700/story.html

[MylesC]

Four percent is *nothing* compared to what has been happening in properties in the US and the global scene.

A lot of our numbers at the Westin are still positive growth in January. As our GM, Grant McCurdy, said in a news story last month, we're still waiting for the other shoe to fall (if it does).

It's definitely a play by play model of business for the time being.

Overall, though, I think hotels in the City actually need a cool down in order to get staffing levels back up (the downtown Delta closed a few floors due to shortages) and actually train people as opposed to just throwing them into the rush of things.

[Ins]

People I know from out of town that come hear on business tell me they can get up to 50% discounts over what they were paying a year ago for a hotel room at the Mac.

The fall in bookings is only half the story.

[MylesC]

Wow...we raised all our rates this year.....