Dive Brief:
- Group and business travel continued to grow at a healthy pace across the U.S. in the first quarter of 2025, according to Cendyn and Amadeus’ Hospitality Group and Business Performance Index, released Thursday.
- For Q1, the overall health index, which assesses the strength of the meetings and events industry, achieved 109.1% growth compared to the prior-year quarter, reaching its highest level in four quarters, per the report. The group index, specifically, achieved 107.4% growth for the same period.
- St. Louis led other U.S. markets in Q1’s overall health index, reaching 121% performance growth year over year, per the report. Events drove group and business travel in the quarter, with events volume higher than in previous years, the companies detailed.
Dive Insight:
Philadelphia and New Orleans followed St. Louis as leaders of the overall health index. The two cities also led other U.S. markets in the group index. Other top markets for group growth were Washington, D.C., San Francisco, and Chicago.
Q1 marked the group index’s 10th consecutive quarter of growth, driven by a 2.6% increase in room nights and a 4.7% increase in ADR, the report detailed.
Events volume in Q1 was 114.6% higher than in the same period in 2024, per the report. Education, national association and technology events led other industries by event volume.
By market, St. Louis’ meetings volume was the highest, followed by Austin, Texas, and Philadelphia, the report detailed. Across markets, the average meeting attendee size was 146 guests, while the average space used was up quarter over quarter to 4,186 square feet.
Hotels across the board benefited from the meetings and events industries in Q1, according to Cendyn and Amadeus.
Choice Hotels International, Hyatt Hotels and Hilton reported in Q1 earnings that group and business travel contributed to their RevPAR results during the quarter. Hilton specifically reported 6% year-over-year growth in group travel, supported by events in urban markets and company meetings.
