Duetto’s latest Pulse Report, which tracked key hotel metrics from September 7-20, shows some considerable increases in web traffic across the North and Latin American markets as interest in travel begins to rise.
Web activity within North America reveals increased interest in travel, with a 29 percent rise in traffic compared to the previous Pulse Report. This is particularly noteworthy considering the last Pulse Report included Labor Day—an indication that people are starting to show some intention in resuming travel.
Gross new bookings proved to be consistent over the past seven weeks. Heading into October, some states are continuing to report positive gains; those with the top performance are Nevada, Tennessee, Florida, and Arizona, the latter of which posted a 176 percent increase in new bookings compared to the last Pulse Report.
Despite the increase, web traffic in North America is not converting at levels hoteliers would ideally like to see. The interest is there, but the commitment is not.
Low Conversion Rates in Latin America
In Latin America, the positive news is that web traffic is now pacing at around the same levels as the same time last year, if not slightly ahead, with a 38 percent increase compared to 2019 and a 5 percent increase compared to the previous Pulse Report. This shows an incredibly strong appetite for travel into the region. However, for a variety of potential reasons, conversion rates remain low.
Separating it from the rest of the region, Mexico showed an increase in pick up of 67 percent in October compared to the last Pulse Report, with a 57 percent increase in November and 53 percent in December. However, it is pacing 42 percent behind the same time last year across the observed 15 months (October 2020 through December 2021). This is mostly in line with Latin America as a whole.
“Web shopping has increased across the North and Latin American regions, but the pick up is just not following through,” commented Daniel Lofton, director of hospitality solutions, Duetto. “We are seeing an increased amount of interest in travel, perhaps as people get tired of lockdown and begin to dream about getting away. But when it comes to it, there are several reasons why they might not make the booking. Perhaps the restrictions in a certain destination put them off, or the price of a hotel, or the fact that they don’t know if they’ll need to quarantine when they return home or not. There is so much uncertainty at the moment, and it is clearly putting people off traveling.”
