Australian hotels have been severely impacted by the coronavirus pandemic and related bans on Chinese travellers.
STR data shows Melbourne and Brisbane were the only two major Australian markets to report year on year RevPAR growth between 24 Jan and 9 Feb, 2020, a two week stretch encompassing Chinese New Year.
All other markets were hit hard with occupancy falling faster than rates.
“Performance was largely unaffected through to the 30th of January. However, as the travel restrictions were enforced the impact has been more noticeable.”
Analyst Matthew Burke said: “Those destinations that see a higher proportion of Chinese visitation appear to be the most impacted.”
He said STR is now working with partners to determine what the impact will be on the meetings industry and international more broadly.