Hotel Occupancy Down, Rates Up

Orange County hotels hosted fewer guests in May than a year earlier, but occupancy in Los Angeles County rose, a Los Angeles consulting firm reported Wednesday.

Room rates were up sharply at hotels in both counties--12.5% in Los Angeles and 10.1% in Orange, according to statistics compiled by PKF Consulting.

Heavy construction in Anaheim, along with El Nino rains, get much of the blame for the decline in visitors to Orange County. For the first five months of 1998, occupancy has averaged 70.73%, down 5%.

PKF said the drop-off abated somewhat in May, with an average occupancy of 71.72%, down 1.7% from May 1997.

Anaheim’s occupancy fell by just 0.8% in May while room rates rose 12.5% to an average of $102.30. Newport Beach hotels, by contrast, had a 4.7% decline in occupancy, while rates rose a more modest 2.9% to $132.83.

Los Angeles County occupancy rose by 2.6% to 71.79% in May. Among the sharply improved markets was Beverly Hills, where occupancy rose 10% to 75.94% and room rates rose 12.2% to an average $267.61.