Midland hotel industry strongest revenue in history

MIDLAND – In 2013, hotels brought in more cash than any other year in history, with revenues totaling $101,001,406, up about 1.7 percent from 2012, according to the Office of the Governor, Economic Development and Tourism.

The average daily rate in 2013 was $107.74, the third highest in all of Texas. Only in Austin, $116.70 per night, and Odessa, $115.34 per night, were the average rates higher, according to Source Strategies Inc. The average price throughout Texas was $94.44 per night.

Each individual hotel in Midland booked an average of 81.9 percent of its available rooms in 2013, the second highest occupancy rate in Texas, but down from 91.5 percent in 2012. San Angelo maintained the highest occupancy rate in 2013 at 82.9 percent.

The occupancy rate went down in 2013 because the overall hotel supply increased significantly while the number of people staying in hotels stayed virtually consistent, according to Keith Dial, Permian Basin Hotel Lodging Association president, said

More than 1,600 additional rooms were available between new hotels built in 2013, bringing the total up to 4,776 rooms at the end of 2013, according to the Midland Convention and Visitors Bureau.

The demand for hotels is not anticipated to go up too much in 2014, so the increased supply will likely continue to drive the average price of a room down, according to Dial.

See previous story Texas hotel occupancy 2013; 11 metros beat state average.