Charlotte Hospitality Market Report

Local hotels capitalizing on tighter travel budgets. Charlotte posted the greatest occupancy gain among any major Southeastern market in 2023. As travel habits shift toward more affordable destinations, inflationary pressure on budgets has helped attract more visitors from the Carolinas and neighboring states, as it entered 2024 with the lowest ADR among major metros in the area. Regionally-low rates are benefiting the upscale and upper upscale segments, reflected by both noting record-high booking volumes last year. On the other end of the spectrum, economy demand has begun to normalize after hitting a post-pandemic peak in early 2023. Fortunately, local needs for housing have spurred a number of conversions of underutilized motels, leading economy occupancy to still exceed the 2019 mark. An optimized economy sector combines with the strength of the upscale and upper upscale segments to lift ADR by over 4 percent this year, one of the 10 fastest clips in the country. Business travel should also remain a tailwind. Office-centric job growth is expected to nearly match the pace of 2023, aiding room demand and facilitating ADR improvements at select-service hotels.