• Home Page
• Journal
  • Journal
  • Distribution
  • Editorial Board
  • Editorial Staff
  • Sections
  • List of reviewers
  • Requirements for Articles
  • Russian Logistics Journal
• News
  • Events list
  • Rules for press releases
  • News of Logistics
• Subscription
  • Subscription via Agencies
  • E-mailing
• Advertising
  • Advertising in Journal
  • Website Advertising
• Archive
• Contacts

Summer 2016 Quality Hotel Market Results in Two Russian Capitals – History of Success Continues

MOSCOW, 26 September, 2016 – JLL presents the H1 2016 results of the quality hotel market  in Moscow and Moscow Region, and St. Petersburg.

“Building on the strong performance of the entire year to date, hotels in Moscow and St. Petersburg had a very good summer. Especially benefitting this high tourist season was for the hotel properties in ‘Northern Venice’. Across all market segments in St. Petersburg, all operational indices grew significantly compared to the previous summer, and once again renewed the records already set earlier this year.” – Tatiana Veller, Head of JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group, says. – “Tourists continued to flow in, both from the Russian regions, attracted by the affordability of the historical city break vacation, and from abroad, mainly Asian countries where the mass tourism market has recently discovered Russia as an attractive cultural destination.”

In general, quality hotels in St. Petersburg continued the record-setting year and this summer increased market-wide occupancy by 4.8 p.p., reaching almost 90%, and with the 20% growth in ADR (to RUB 7,900), brought the RevPAR levels up by 27%, to previously unprecedented RUB 6,900.

“Occupancy-wise, the highest gain on the summer results of last year in St. Petersburg was recorded in the midscale segment, where it grew by 6.5 p.p. The segment with the highest absolute occupancy – 92% on average in three summer months was the Upper Midscale, and the lowest (but still very high) occupancy was recorded in the Luxury segment (83%). At the same time, luxury hotels seem to have played the rate game, using the strong demand to gain additional RUB 3,500 on the ADR this summer over the previous year (reaching whopping RUB 23,000, and surpassing Moscow’s luxury segment by far).”, - Tatiana Veller notes. – “All other segments also increased the rates on the back of the robust guest flows, and combined with occupancy growth, brought a lot more to the bottom line then last year.”

In Moscow, the batch was a little more mixed, although the market average indices showed sustained growth. Occupancy across the entire quality room stock in the city increased by 5.2 p.p. (reaching 79% - the first occurrence in our history of observation), ADR added RUB 600 (10%) reaching almost RUB 7,000, and the resulting RevPAR growth was 10%, to RUB 5,040.

“Luxury segment was the only one to lose a bit on occupancy, but continued growing the rates (by 18%, or RUB 2,500, reaching RUB 16,500) – a resulting RevPAR increase of 15%, to RUB 11,200 was also very healthy. Upper Upscale, Upscale, Upper Midscale all grew by about 6 p.p. in occupancy, and the highest number of guests favored the Upper Midscale hotels this summer – 88.5% of the rooms in this segment were occupied.” – Tatiana Veller commented.

The rate gains also happened in all segments of the Moscow’s hotel market besides the lowest segment, Midscale, which lost a meager RUB 20 in rate (dropping to RUB 3,400), apparently striving for occupancy – but still managed to gain almost RUB 200 in RevPAR. Leader in RevPAR growth (19%) was the Upper Upscale segment, increasing in absolute terms by RUB 1,100.

“The next hottest market, attracting a lot of attention of investors, developers and hotel operators, seems to be the Moscow Region. Here the new trend of short weekend breaks in close reach by car settled in, and the market is responding with regular announcements of potential new projects. The room stock currently being offered on the market consists of almost anything besides international luxury quality accommodation, and remains largely unbranded, but we feel that this situation will correct itself with time.” – Tatiana Veller says.

Summer of 2016 in the Moscow Region was marked by further increases in occupancy and rates, with quality resorts selling 61% of available rooms (which, compared to the same period in 2015, is an improvement of 14 p.p.) Rates also continued growth, and surpassed last summer by RUB 600 (to reach RUB 5,600), which resulted in a RUB 1,000 gain in RevPAR.

“We trust that the general trend in the ADR and occupancy growing, or at least remaining very strong, across three geographical markets and all hotel segments is here to stay, however in a couple of months we will be facing the usual year-end slowdown. September and October, nevertheless, should be still robust in the operational results, as they are a shoulder tourist season, aided by the increased business and MICE activity in the big city markets.” – Tatiana Veller concludes.