Downtown Cleveland accommodations proceed pandemic restoration

CLEVELAND – After a busy weekend with the Rock Hall Induction Ceremony, downtown Cleveland hotels continue to see guest returns this year after a difficult 2020.

Nationwide figures from STR, a global hospitality data and analytics firm, show that the average price of a hotel is actually higher now than it was before the 2019 pandemic.

However, the data also shows that Cleveland is still lagging a bit in recovery, with the average price of a downtown hotel costing $ 134 in 2021, compared to $ 138 in 2019.

“We expect this recovery to continue, but it could take a while,” said Patrick Mayock, STR vice president of research and development.

In addition, STR data shows hotel occupancy for the Cleveland area of ​​51.9% from January to September 2021, 12% less than the same period in 2019.

“Much of this recovery to date has been driven by recreational travelers during the summer travel season, which was the result of a pandemic that left everyone stuck indoors for most of a year,” Mayock added. “We saw a lot of catching up to do. Families wanted to get out on the streets, they wanted to get off, they wanted to travel again, and for most of the summer months they drove the recovery. Since we’ve worked our way out of the summer, more into the conference and business travel season, this is really going to be key. To what extent is business travel now returning to the industry? “

Between the NFL Draft in April, the Rock Hall Induction last weekend, and the upcoming NBA Draft in February, it’s been a busy year for Hilton Cleveland Downtown General Manager Teri Agosta.

“The great thing about 2022 is that we’re starting the NBA All-Star game in February,” she said. “I mean, Cleveland is It City right now.”

Agosta stated that in terms of sales and guests, the first half of the year was about 40% of the business compared to 2019, while the second half of the year is closer to 75-80% and growing.

“In the first half of the year we somehow repositioned ourselves,” she said. “We’ve had good days and bad. Now in the second half of the year it’s pretty good and we’re really getting back on track.”

Agosta told News 5 that she expects the Hilton to fully recover from the pandemic by spring 2023.

“We’re back,” she said.