HOUSTON – Houston hoteliers anticipated a tourism gold rush when the city landed FIFA World Cup matches, rooms sold out months in advance, premium rates, and visitors flooding in from across the globe.
But with the tournament now just weeks away, many hotel operators say the massive surge in bookings they expected simply hasn’t materialized.
The World Cup was once described by city leaders as “104 Super Bowls.” Seventy-eight of those matches are in the U.S., with seven taking place in Houston. But hotel operators say occupancy levels are nowhere near what seven Super Bowls would actually look like.
“We did expect to have more on the books going into it,” said Margaret Smart of Wyndham’s The District at Hogg Palace in Downtown Houston.
According to the American Hotel and Lodging Association, about 70 percent of Houston hotels say bookings are coming in slower than expected. Houston First reports bookings in the city are still up, roughly 17 percent in June and 14 percent in July, but hotel operators say that means one of the world’s biggest sporting events is currently driving a stronger-than-normal summer.
Hotels across the city have had to pivot, lowering rates, removing minimum-stay requirements and relaxing cancellation policies in a bid to attract guests.
At The Sam Houston Hotel, staff say they’re not even hitting rodeo-level occupancy, a significant benchmark in a city that treats the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo as a near-sellout event every year.
“Almost every week we’re discussing, and it’s the same conversation,” said Morgan Hollingshead of The Sam Houston Hotel. “What are we doing for FIFA? What are we changing? How are we going to change our rate here?”
Hollingshead said the gap between expectations and reality has been stark.
“We were expecting entirety of FIFA, almost like rodeo numbers, where we’re pretty much 98 to 100% sold out. But currently… we’re sitting at an 80% occupancy,” Hollingshead said.
Hotel operators point to several possible culprits. FIFA partners and travel agencies released large blocks of unused rooms back into the market, triggering a scramble for hotels to rebook them. High ticket prices, international travel costs and global uncertainty are also being cited as contributing factors.
“Ticket prices are extremely high, plus airfare, plus hotels,” said Emre Ozsut of The Lancaster Hotel.
Despite the slower-than-expected pace, hoteliers say they’re still holding out hope for a last-minute booking surge.
“We are hoping for the last-minute booking to pick up, as everyone is expecting, but then again, we don’t have a lot of expectations,” Ozsut said.
Houston First, meanwhile, says it still expects the World Cup to deliver a major economic boost for the city, and that the global spotlight could pay dividends for Houston’s tourism industry long after the final whistle blows.
“It will be good to have Houston on the map,” Ozsut said.