Long weekend a bonanza for hotel operators

Hotel operators said the long weekend in Sydney was one of the busiest in years, surpassing the record set during the British and Irish Lions rugby tour.

Meanwhile, data for the June quarter, from Dransfield Hotels and Resorts, shows the capital city hotel market grew at half the rate of expectations. The Hotel Futures report said the average city revenue per available room (revPAR) increased 1.1 per cent compared with the previous corresponding period.

Nationally, Australian hotels appear relatively stable, however there is wide divergence in performance between individual cities. The six months to June were steady as revPAR increased by a nominal 0.9 per cent, with a fair way to travel in the second half to reach the forecast 6.2 per cent annual growth. "In the June 2013 quarter, hotels in Sydney recorded 5.3 per cent revPAR growth. Demand increased by 4 per cent and fully absorbed the 1.4 per cent rise in room stock," the report said.

Tourism Accommodation Australia's Carol Giuseppi said 75 per cent of rooms in Sydney were four and five star, with 1500 rooms to be added, predominantly in this category, by 2017 (including Barangaroo and International Convention Centre, Darling Harbour).

"The real need is in the three- to four-star category, and as always we advocate for sustainable demand-led supply," she said.

General manager for Accor Hotels in NSW, Scott Boyes, said its hotels in the CBD reported a record weekend with occupancy and revPAR at all-time highs.

"Over the bumper Labour Day weekend, Accor's Sydney CBD hotels (which include Pullman, Sebel, Novotel, Mercure, ibis and MGallery hotels) were at a record 99 per cent occupancy," he said. He said the long weekend, including the Fleet Review, NRL grand final and One Direction concert pushed performance 15 per cent higher than the British and Irish Lions tour - the previous high.