Hotels in United States. Picture: Unsplash

Despite an uptick in leisure travel, a new report released by the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) shows that the road to recovery for the hotel industry is long with 21 of the top 25 U.S. hotel markets remaining in a depression or recession. The new data shows urban hotels are still in a “depression” cycle while the overall U.S. hotel industry remains in a “recession.”

Urban markets, which rely heavily on business from events and group meetings, continue to face a severe financial crisis as they have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. Urban hotels were down 52% in room revenue in May compared to May 2019. For example, New York City, which remains in a depression, has seen one-third of its hotel rooms (42,030 rooms) wiped out by the COVID-19 pandemic, with nearly 200 hotels closing in the city.

Source: Travel Daily News