New Research Finds The Outlook Is ‘Bullish’ for Canadian Hoteliers

The outlook over the coming 12 months is good for Canadian accommodation providers according to newly released research by SiteMinder.

In the 2023 edition of the open hotel commerce platform’s consumer research on accommodation, data reveals that 91% of travellers globally intend to travel at least the same amount as they did over the past year — including at least 1-in-2 (57%) who intend to travel more.

Additionally, the number planning to travel only internationally has more than doubled, from 20% last year to 42% this year.

SiteMinder’s research found that among travellers from the US — Canada’s largest source market — the proportion intending to travel more than last year also sits at 57%.

Those findings, coupled with an increasing desire to travel internationally among travellers from the UK, France, Mexico, Germany, India and Australia — Canada’s other six leading source markets — suggests a bullish outlook for Canadian accommodation providers over the coming 12 months.

SiteMinder’s Changing Traveller Report 2023 is an analysis of more than 10,000 travellers surveyed across the US and 11 other countries, including Australia, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Thailand and the UK.

The findings underpin the four key traveler profiles shaping the travel plans and motivations that will impact the global accommodation industry over the coming year:

• The enduring explorer: Committed to traveling, regardless of living costs
• The digital dependent: Reliant on new technologies and bound to devices
• The memory maker: Investing in experiences, in a roaring ‘20s rerun
• The conscious collaborator: An open ally to accommodations and the community

When it comes to accommodation, in spite of inflation, over four-fifths of American travellers say they are happy to spend money beyond the cost of their room. However, increased prices are forcing them to adapt, with cheaper rooms and package deals listed as the two most common ways they will overcome risen costs.

The finding is unsurprising given that 2-in-3 American travellers say that what they need from their accommodation has changed in the last year. A ‘great experience’ and ‘space for their family and friends’ are what Americans today want most from their accommodation and, for a quarter, it is more important now than this time last year that their accommodation provides a connection with the local culture and community.

The number of American travellers intending to work during their next trip has risen incrementally from 29% last year to 31% this year. Likewise, budget accommodation and camping or holiday parks have gained ground vis-a-vis big chains and resorts.

SiteMinder’s regional vice president for the Americas, Jason Lugo, says the research affirms the health of the travel sector in Canada and the critical role that local accommodation providers must play.

Says Lugo: “Our research provides strong indicators that travel over the coming year will remain steady even as travellers plan for ways to adapt to inflationary pressures. Encouragingly for local accommodation providers, we are seeing the intent continuing to grow among travelers, especially internationally.”

To access SiteMinder’s Changing Traveller Report 2023, click here.