Chicago Hospitality Market Report

Full-service occupancy surpasses select- and limited-service segments. Last year, Chicago held a number of new events, drawing in thousands of tourists and aiding the metro’s ongoing improvements in fundamentals. Two consecutive nights of performances by Taylor Swift in June resulted in roughly 44,000 bookings, and helped lift monthly CBD hotel occupancy above 80 percent for the first time since before the pandemic. The following month, roughly 47,000 people attended the inaugural Chicago NASCAR race, eliciting a $109 million overall economic impact. Amid the success of this event, Chicago will remain on this year’s scheduled circuit. Although fundamentals are poised to continue recovering in 2024, improvements will vary by service level. A softer labor market, paired with the cumulative weight of recent inflation, may pressure budget-conscious travelers more, keeping overall occupancy below the pre-pandemic norm. Full-service hotels, however, are anticipated to garner the largest improvement, placing its measure nearly 200 basis points ahead of the market level. As such, segment RevPAR joins seven other major metros in accelerating by double digits.