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According to the Banque de<\/strong><\/b> France, 2023 was a very buoyant year for tourism in France, with record results<\/strong><\/b>, including a +12% rise to 63.5 billion euros in international tourism receipts .<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n <\/p>\n However, the year was less kind to the 31 Palaces (a third of which are in Paris) and 433 five-star establishments.<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n <\/p>\n This is one of the many conclusions of the 47th edition of KPMG’s \u201cL’Industrie H\u00f4teli\u00e8re Fran\u00e7aise\u201d study<\/strong><\/b>, which examined the operating and management ratios in 2023 of over 3,100 hotels<\/strong><\/b> (representing 245,000 rooms). This represents almost 43% of the total number of registered hotels in France.<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The study \u201calso takes stock of demand dynamics for 2023 and 2024<\/strong><\/b>, as well as developments in investment, hotel valuation, and trends strengthening the hospitality industry after the Covid crisis.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n According to the Observatoire des Palaces 2023, the sector zoom conducted by the leading audit and consulting firm, overall occupancy rates for French Palaces fell last year<\/strong><\/b>, across all regions (Paris, Alps, C\u00f4te d’Azur, Provence, Basque Country, Bordeaux and Saint Barth\u00e9lemy (Caribbean)). The only notable exception is Courchevel,<\/strong><\/b> where the rate rounded off by one point. The posh resort boasts no fewer than 5 palaces: the K2, Les Airelles, Cheval Blanc, Barri\u00e8re Les Neiges and L’Apog\u00e9e.<\/p>\n\n <\/p>\n Is there a causal link here? Average prices in French Palaces have risen by a further 25% in 2023<\/strong><\/b>, all regions combined, after already soaring by more than 30% in 2022<\/strong><\/b>!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n However, this strategy has enabled them to record sales growth of around 15% last year<\/strong><\/b> compared with 2022. Similarly, their RevPAR<\/strong><\/b> (revenue per available room) isup 20% on average in France.<\/strong><\/b> With a slight bonus for the Palaces de la Riviera, which posted the highest sales growth: +21%.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n But alongside the Palaces – a very exclusive club reserved for establishments distinguished by their heritage (history, architecture), tailor-made experiences and top-of-the-range services – 5-star hotels,<\/strong><\/b> more focused on \u201ccontemporary comfort\u201d, were no longer the most buoyant last year<\/strong><\/b>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n While hotel room nights across all segments rose by 3% in 2023 in France<\/strong><\/b>, almost catching up with 2019 (-1% vs. 2019, source: INSEE), occupanc<\/strong><\/b>y growth<\/strong><\/b> was strong across all hotel categories… except for 5-star superior hotels<\/strong><\/b>!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n These are the very hotels for which \u201cthe weight of international clientele is the greatest<\/strong><\/b>\u201d, as KPMG points out.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n More generally, taking all categories together,<\/strong><\/b> the study reveals \u201ca general increase in RevPAR for hotels in France in 2023,<\/strong><\/b> which has offset the rise in operating expenses and thus generated EBITDA levels higher than in 2022\u201d.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Average prices for French hotels<\/strong><\/b> have themselves risen in all categories (between +4% and +12%<\/strong><\/b> between 2022 and 2023, depending on the segment). This surge was linked to the \u201cinflationary context\u201d, the \u201creturn of international customers\u201d and \u201cthe hosting of sporting events (Rugby World Cup)\u201d. These price rises offset those in operating costs<\/strong><\/b>, and EBITDA (<\/strong><\/b>gross operating profit) levels exceeded those of 2022.<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n KPMG sees this as proof of the \u201cresilience\u201d of the French hotel industry, superior to that of most of its European counterparts.<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Indeed, last year the European hotel industry \u201cdid not escape the repercussions of an economic<\/strong><\/b>, financial and geopolitical context<\/strong><\/b> temporarily less favorable to investment<\/strong><\/b> (record inflation, rising cost of debt, rising construction costs, political instability, etc.)\u201d.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n In 2023<\/strong><\/b>, the Old Continent<\/strong><\/b> thus recorded \u201cits lowest volume of hotel transactions since 2014<\/strong><\/b> (excluding 2020) with \u20ac13.8 billion in traded volumes, down<\/strong><\/b> 14%<\/strong><\/b> on 2022 and 24% on the ten-year average<\/strong><\/b>\u201d.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Against this backdrop, France<\/strong><\/b> is one of the continent’s most resilient hotel markets<\/strong><\/b>, with total hotel transaction<\/strong><\/b> volumes down 12% to<\/strong><\/b> \u20ac2.1 billion in 2023, but4% higher than the ten-year average<\/strong><\/b>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n The other good news is that the resilience of the French hotel industry is confirmed in 2024<\/strong><\/b>, albeit in a more \u201cmixed\u201d way<\/strong><\/b>… While 2025<\/strong><\/b> looks rather auspicious.<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n <\/p>\n In the first half of 2024<\/strong><\/b>, the number of hotel room nights declined by 2.2%<\/strong><\/b> to 100 million. But while domestic overnight stays <\/strong><\/b>fell (-3.6%<\/strong><\/b> vs. 2023), foreign overnight stays<\/strong><\/b> continued to grow (+0.3%).<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n <\/p>\n KPMG explains the domestic under-performance<\/strong><\/b> by \u201ca series of cyclical factors:<\/strong><\/b> unfavorable weather, election weekends, a wait-and-see attitude and a shift in departures in August and in September\/October, with strong pick-up in bookings in the capital\u201d.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n In Paris and the Ile-de-France region<\/strong><\/b>, hotel occupancy suffered in the run-up to the Olympic Games, but recovered during the<\/strong><\/b> two weeks of the Games<\/strong><\/b>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n In June<\/strong><\/b>, hotel occupancy in Greater Paris fell by 13 points<\/strong><\/b> compared to 2022, \u201cwith business and leisure travel postponed to a later date\u201d.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n In July,<\/strong><\/b> market and non-market overnight stays by domestic customers fell by a<\/strong><\/b> further 6%<\/strong><\/b>, while those by European and international customers remained stable.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Fortunately, from July 24<\/strong><\/b>, just 2 days before the opening ceremony, the Olympic Games effect<\/strong><\/b> was finally felt.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Overall, over the 19-day event period<\/strong><\/b> and across all host territories (Ile-de-France and 8 major cities), French overnight stays rose by +12%, and international overnight stays by +16%.<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cThese performances, which were concentrated on the event venues (Ile-de-France and other major cities), helped to balance out the summer results<\/strong><\/b>,\u201d says the study.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n And the coming months of 2024 bode well for the future.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cWhile an overall assessment of hotel occupancy in the third quarter is expected, the outlook for the off-season looks promising,”<\/strong><\/b> says St\u00e9phane Botz, KPMG Partner in France, National Hospitality Director<\/strong><\/b>. According to him, \u201c2025 should also benefit from the notoriety generated by the Olympic Games,<\/strong><\/b> as well as from flows generated by major international trade shows such as the Paris Air Show.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Finally, the KPMG study highlights a number of promising trends for the Hospitality sector.<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n <\/p>\n While 2022 and 2023 \u201cmarked the return of the golden age of wellness\u201d<\/strong><\/b>, with an \u201cexplosion in demand for wellness stays\u201d, and \u201cunprecedented levels of spa occupancy\u201d, this craze slows down in 2024.<\/strong><\/b> KPMG sees this as the \u201cconsequence of both the impact of inflation<\/strong><\/b> on customer purchasing power and the density of supply<\/strong><\/b>\u201d.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n In such a context, \u201cthe ability of hotels to stand out from the crowd<\/strong><\/b> and innovate in order to better meet customer expectations and win their loyalty is key\u201d.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n On the other hand, another trend is still booming: that of \u201cgreen residential seminars\u201d.<\/strong><\/b><\/p>\n <\/p>\n These are \u201cdriven by strong demand from companies for venues that integrate CSR criteria<\/strong><\/b>, and from their employees for stays that reconnect with nature (and their teams)\u201d.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n This type of offer, \u201chistorically dominated by a few major players<\/strong><\/b> who have made it their speciality\u201d, is seeing the emergence of new players,<\/strong><\/b> \u201cwith business models enabling them to welcome complementary clienteles (business during the week, leisure at weekends)\u201d.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Some venues<\/strong><\/b> have \u201cspecialized in hosting high-end<\/strong><\/b>, small-committee seminars<\/strong><\/b>, with increasingly exclusive and personalized experiences\u201d.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n LVMH<\/strong><\/b>, the world’s leading luxury goods group, has made no mistake<\/strong><\/b>. In early October, it took matters into its own hands by announcing a future campus<\/strong><\/b> on a listed site in the Yvelines region, owned by an association run by Yann Arthus Bertrand. Its employees will be trained in sustainable issues<\/strong><\/b> in this veritable sanctuary dedicated to biodiversity…<\/p>\n <\/p>\nLes Palaces de Courchevel: a good vintage in 2023<\/h2>\n
5-star hotels in poor shape by 2023<\/h2>\n
Resilience of the French hotel industry<\/h2>\n
A bright outlook for 2025<\/h2>\n
The Olympic Games effect<\/h2>\n
Wellness and green seminars: promising trends<\/h2>\n
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