As the summer travel season starts in the US, top markets for travel during the Memorial Day holiday weekend reflect a broad range of climates and activities including resort areas in Hawaii and Florida, major city centers, and smaller communities in the northeast and west.
According to Amadeus’ Demand360® data as of May 15, 2022, occupancy is currently at 51% for the United States Memorial Day holiday weekend, with guests arriving on Friday, May 27 and departing Monday, May 30. This is matched to hotel occupancy for the same time in 2019 and exceeds occupancy in 2021 (47%) and 2020 (11%). When we consider that booking lead times are still shorter than pre-pandemic levels as detailed below, there’s significant opportunity for Memorial Day 2022 to easily surpass 2019.
Additionally, Amadeus Demand360® data shows U.S. hotel market performance continues to steadily improve. Looking at performance for the full month of May 2022, inclusive of actual performance through May 15th and forward-looking, on-the-books data for the remainder of the month, including the holiday weekend:
- Occupancy for the month is 58%, exceeding occupancy as of the same time for the three prior years (47% in 2021, 18% in 2020, and 56% in 2019).
- Average Daily Rate (ADR) for the month is $172, exceeding ADR as of the same time for the three prior years ($128 in 2021, $90 in 2020, and $166 in 2019).
- Booking lead times continue to improve toward more traditional levels with 49% of bookings received within seven days of arrival compared to 54% in 2021, 71% in 2020, and 43% in 2019.
There appears to be significant opportunity for occupancy and ADR to further improve the full month performance.
Top 10 hotel occupancy markets:
Market State Occupancy
| 1 | Honolulu | Hawaii | 73.4% |
| 2 | Kahului | Hawaii | 73.2% |
| 3 | Key West | Florida | 72.5% |
| 4 | Santa Fe | New Mexico | 71.9% |
| 5 | Kailua/Kona | Hawaii | 71.5% |
| 6 | Boston | Massachusetts | 66.9% |
| 7 | Anchorage | Alaska | 63.4% |
| 8 | Burlington | Vermont | 62.5% |
| 9 | Benton Harbor | Michigan | 62.1% |
| 10 | Monterey | California | 61.3% |
Top Destinations for US travelers – air travel booked:
- New York
- Los Angeles
- San Francisco
- Cancun
- Boston
- Chicago
- Orlando
- London
- Seattle
- Honolulu
Top 10 rental car markets:
- Orlando
- Denver
- Los Angeles
- Las Vegas
- Boston
- Atlanta
- Phoenix
- Miami
- Fort Lauderdale
- Tampa
