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| October 24, 2024 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
AAHOA News
 What Happened: Members of AAHOA participated in an exclusive virtual briefing hosted by the Biden-Harris Administration for the world's largest hotel owners association on Wednesday. The session, organized by the White House Office of Public Engagement, focused on key issues affecting small businesses and provided an update on the current economic landscape.
Deeper Dive: During the briefing, senior Administration officials discussed federal efforts aimed at supporting small business owners, including initiatives related to access to Small Business Administration (SBA) loans, efforts to improve the supply chain, and providing greater transparency with resort fees and junk fees that impact the industry.
Why It Matters: "This briefing underscores how important AAHOA and its members are to the ongoing conversation around small business policies," said AAHOA Chairman Miraj S. Patel, who welcomed members to the briefing. "Having the opportunity to hear directly from senior government officials about these key issues is crucial as our members continue to navigate today's evolving economic environment."
 What Happened: AAHOA is deeply disappointed by the New York City Council's decision to pass the Safe Hotels Act on Wednesday, October 23, despite recent revisions. While the exemption for hotels with fewer than 100 rooms offers relief to some, AAHOA remains concerned about the adverse effects of this legislation on the broader hotel industry, particularly minority-owned businesses. The revisions fail to address industry leaders' critical concerns throughout the legislative process.
Deeper Dive: The Safe Hotels Act (Int. No. 991-C) threatens to disrupt normal hotel operations and could increase costs. Hoteliers would be required to secure an additional operating license and ban the use of subcontractors for core functions such as housekeeping and front desk services. AAHOA believes the legislation still creates significant burdens for the industry.
What's Next: AAHOA will continue to work closely with its members to address the impact of this legislation and will seek opportunities to engage with policymakers to ensure that hotel owners' voices are heard and considered in future decisions.
 What's Happening: The 2024 AAHOA Florida Charity Golf Tournament is taking place on Wednesday, November 6, at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, FL, the day before the Florida Hotel Owners Conference & Trade Show on Thursday, November 7! The registration fee has been reduced to just $101 per player.
Why It Matters: Participate in both exciting events in beautiful Daytona Beach—play a round of golf while supporting a great cause, and take advantage of valuable networking and educational opportunities at the Hotel Owners Conference! Register today and secure your spot!  What Happened: Kudos to the Central Midwest Region for an incredible Hotel Owners Conference & Trade Show! Thank you to Regional Director Viral Patel and the amazing Ambassadors for organizing such a successful event. With over 150 attendees, 22 new members joining the AAHOA family, and nearly $31,000 raised for PAC, this event was one for the books.
Deeper Dive: We also want to express our gratitude to special guest speakers, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, Maryland Heights Mayor Mike Moeller, and Missouri State Treasurer Vivek Malek, for sharing valuable insights on their work. Your support means the world to our members and the industry!
 What Happened: At the end of September, the Southeast Texas Hotel Owners Conference & Trade Show took place in Houston, TX. Under the leadership of Regional Director Bhavik Patel and with the support of our hardworking Ambassadors, the association welcomed over 500 attendees and achieved a record-breaking $125,000 in PAC donations—a milestone for AAHOA.
Deeper Dive: Attendees were fortunate to hear from a fantastic lineup of guest speakers, including Garrett Coppedge, Associate General Counsel of the Texas Hotel & Lodging Association, Kevin Sloan, Managing Partner at Gauthier Murphy & Houghtaling LLC, Jin Laxmidas, Vice President of the Small Independent Motel Association, and Jorge Franz, Senior Vice President of Tourism & Industry Relations at Houston First Corporation. We also received video remarks from U.S. Representatives Randy Weber and Troy Nehls.
Congratulations to the Southeast Texas Region for representing the home region of AAHOA Chairman Miraj S. Patel so incredibly well.
 What Happened: Thank you to everyone who joined us for the BWH Hotels Brand Alliance Meeting during the 2024 BWH Hotels Annual Convention! This opportunity allowed us to highlight AAHOA's ongoing work in advocacy, membership growth, upcoming events, and much more.
Why It Matters: A special shoutout to BWH President & CEO Larry Cuculic for being part of this impactful gathering. These meetings are key to building stronger relationships with brand leadership, fostering open dialogue on industry challenges, and driving collaboration.
 Pack your bags and get your passports ready because we’re headed to Mexico City!
What's Happening: Join us on February 6-7, 2025, at the breathtaking Andaz Mexico City Condesa for an unforgettable experience! The AAHOA HYPE Conference is designed to ignite the next generation of hospitality leaders with cutting-edge insights, inspiring sessions, and invaluable networking opportunities.
This is your chance to level up your career and explore the vibrant energy and culture of Mexico City! Space is limited, and this event WILL sell out.
AAHOA Advocacy in Action
Featured Content
What You Need to Know
Time Is Running Out - Act Now!
The claim deadline has been extended! Take advantage of your opportunity to receive funds from a $5.54 billion settlement with Visa and Mastercard for merchants who used their credit card services between January 1, 2004, and January 31, 2019.
AAHOA Education
 Smart Hotels of the Future: Spoiler Alert -- The Future is Here!
Featured Club Blue Member
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Featured Member Benefit
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Featured Platinum/Silver Partner
Ecolab, the global industry leader in hotel cleaning and sanitization, offers preferred pricing to AAHOA Members. Save on laundry, housekeeping, kitchen, pool and spa chemical programs, and more! For more information, please visit the website, then contact Michael Pfister (Michael.pfister@ecolab.com) or call 952-852-0926 today!
Industry News
Though overall ADR was up in September – when compared against Sept. 2023 – occupancy and RevPAR fell slightly, with the positive growth likely fueled by event-based travel.
(Source: CoStar) The Expedia Group recently unveiled its annual Unpack forecast, which shows an increase in traveler searches for all-inclusive properties and onsite dining options, which tracks with the continuing trend of bleisure travel.
(Source: Business Wire) Despite widespread opposition from industry representatives, including AAHOA, the New York City Council passed the Safe Hotels Act this week, which many predict will have a detrimental affect on hospitality in the city and could lead to similar legislation elsewhere in the country.
(Source: Hotel Dive)
Today's Hotelier
In the Market
As Truist Securities wrote, “Overall U.S. RevPAR was +4.2% y/y for the week ending 10/19/2024, per STR/ CoStar, above the prior week's result of +3.8% y/y and above the trailing 10-week average of +1.5%. We previously highlighted that hurricane-related displacement could result in incremental demand for Midscale and Economy hotels, and that has proven to be the case in Florida (and continues in Houston). FEMA is offering lodging reimbursement for those impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton, as has been the case with past storms. This demand aids current RevPAR results but results in a difficult comp next year. Tampa RevPAR y/y was +33.2% last week; Houston was +21.6%. Upscale RevPAR: +3.7% y/y; Upper Midscale RevPAR: +4.0% y/y.”
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AAHOA South Central Texas Town Hall | Edinburg, TX
