Showing strong recovery, the hospitality industry in India witnessed a growth of 169.4% YoY in RevPAR during Q3 2021 as compared to Q3 2020, according to JLL’s Hotel Momentum India (HMI) Q3 2021. With a 389.8% increase, Goa re-emerged as the RevPAR leader in the absolute terms, followed by Bengaluru and Hyderabad. This is primarily due to the low base of Q3 2020. Furthermore, domestic operators dominated signings over international operators with the ratio of 57:43 in terms of inventory volume in Q3 2021.
An increase in leisure demand as travel restrictions were eased out post the second wave of COVID-19 is a strong factor driving this growth. Post the full and partial lockdowns witnessed in many states during April and May of 2021, the sector witnessed a sharp recovery in leisure travel towards the end of Q2 2021. This trend continued into Q3 2021 as inter-state travel restrictions were further eased and an improvement in travelers’ confidence was seen with the large-scale vaccination drive across the nation.
“The sector has witnessed a sharp recovery in Q3 2021 post the second wave of the pandemic. Holiday destinations are sold out on most weekends with domestic tourists deciding to explore different destinations across the nation. Demand for weddings continues to grow as restrictions on large gatherings are further eased. F&B dining has also witnessed a strong recovery both in major metropolitan cities as well as in tier 2 towns, on the back of improved market sentiments and growth in vaccination numbers. In this quarter, we have witnessed a slight up-tick in corporate travel as well, which we believe would be a major step towards a full recovery for the sector,” said Jaideep Dang, Managing Director, Hotels and Hospitality Group, South Asia, JLL.
