Carson City lodging take up; occupancy is flat

Lodging property occupancy is flat but revenues are significantly higher, the Carson City’s Visitors Bureau board was told Monday.

Joel Dunn, bureau executive director, said January occupancy was slightly lower for the top 13 hotels and motels than a year ago, and slightly higher for the top five, but he crowed about jumps in similar comparisons in the average room rate for each of those categories and over the growth in the month’s total revenue for all properties. He said boosts from 2013, which was a year of the Legislature like 2015, was even higher.

“Even if occupancy is fairly stagnant or up just a little, people coming in are spending more,” said Dunn. The bureau operates mainly on lodging tax revenues.

Dunn also reported that for the trailing 12 months revenue was up 6.46, when comparing 2015 to 2014, and a whopping 20.47 percent when comparing 2015 with 2013.

Average January room rates for the top 13 properties were up 16.05 percent this year, compared with last, and 19.5 percent when comparing them with January of 2013. For the top five properties, the average room rate jumped 4.69 percent compared with January, 2014, and 12.43 percent compared with the same month in 2013. Total revenue for all properties was up 10.86 percent this year in January, compared with last, and 23.94 percent when compared with 2013.

The bureau board turned down a proposal to meet on the fourth Monday each month rather than the second, approved a report showing revenue and expenditures were on track for two-thirds of the fiscal year, and heard marketing reports.

Kyle Horvath said of marketing that “Be Our Guest” and an international emphasis will be employed. He said target markets also are in the state and nation. He said the bureau’s website soon should allow for translation into languages of targeted countries.

“Our website is going to add a translation feature,” he said.