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The Governor’s Conference on Tourism is beingv held this week at the Westin Kierland Resoryt and Spain Scottsdale, attracting industryt executives and hoteliers from across the state. Numbers released Thursda as part of that event show the impacr of the economic downturn onthe state’x multimillion-dollar hospitality industry. “The lodging industruy is clearlyin pain. Hotel economiess track what is happening in the rest of the said Arizona Tourism Director Sherry The state figuresshow 37.4 milliomn people visited Arizona in 2008 — a 3 percent decline from 2007. About 26 million leisure travelers speny timein Arizona, a decline of 3.
3 while business travel was down 7.6 percent, to 6.3 million Direct spending by visitors to the state declined by a littlde more than 3 percent in 2008, to $18.5 billion. The numbers also show the impact of residentss staying closerto home. While nonresident travel to the statwe was downabout 4.7 percent, to 22.6 million, about 9.8 milliom Arizonans traveled within the state, a declins of only 2.9 percent. And even thoug h overseas visitors madeup 2.8 perceny of the state’s total more than half a million Canadians traveled to Arizona, mostlyg from Alberta, Ontario and British Columbia. Mexicann visitors also played significantly inthose totals, with more than 3.
85 million travelint to Arizona. While the averagde daily rate of a room in Arizon last yearwas $107.76, a bit higher than the nationaol ADR of $106.5, those numbers have not remainedc strong. Tourism figures released for the firstquarteer — typically the high tourist season — show the hospitalitgy industry is still challengedr by the downturn. Statewide, ADR was down 13.8 from $132.72 in first-quarter 2008 to $114.47 in first-quarter 2009. In metro Phoenix, ADR sank 16 from $160.87 in first-quarter 2008 to $135.087 in first-quarter 2009. Because metro Phoenix boasts manyluxurious upper-tier resorts, dailyt rates in the region are somewhat highed than statewide figures.
Meanwhile, hoteliers continue to try to filltheird properties. Occupancy rates were 74 percent for the first quartere of 2008 in metro Phoenix thankx to hosting a Super but occupancy was just 63 percent for the firstt quarter of2009 — a 14.7 percen t decline. Revenue per available room, a measurew of earnings from each hotel room, dropped 28.3 percent, from $119.15 to $85.37. Henryt and other members of the Tourism Office are trying to builr business through targeted marketing campaigns andthe “Value Web site, a one-stop online shop for the state’s hotelzs and destinations to tout their value packagee and programs.
More than 300 packages and destinations across the stateare featured. The Tourismm Office also will launcha “Free to marketing campaign in select cities, including Chicago, Los Angelesx and Denver, which will focus on how Arizona properties cater to different travelers’ from outdoorsmen to families to the shopping crowd. Those cities are being targeted because research shows those from more farawauy destinations stay in Arizona longer andspend more, bringing new moneuy to the state. In the Tourism Office has launched Faceboomk and Twitter options to interact directlygwith travelers.
The downturn also has affected theTourisn Office, which is subject to the state hirinv freeze and is facing budget cuts of about 4.5 millioj in this fiscal year. Henryh said that will impact somemarketing efforts, not
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