Hotels in Southeast Asia seeing the return of MICE business and major leisure events

Southeast Asia’s hotel industry has seen highs and lows over the past 12 months. The first half of 2022 was a struggle for many hoteliers due to limitations around COVID-19, but as the year progressed and restrictions eased, the demand for travel began to steadily climb. As has been the case for most markets across the globe, it has been leisure travel that has shown the most resilience in the region, yet much of the recent demand in Southeast Asia can be linked to MICE travel and events.

This piece shows the events impact in recent historical data as well as upcoming 2023 market impacts via Forward STAR. Measuring future trends in demand and shifts in bookings, Forward STAR is now active in 450 areas around the globe.

MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) bring in big business

Conferences, expos and large-scale trade events made their in-person comeback throughout 2022 following two years of cancellations. The demand generated by such events was clearly highlighted in Singapore, which saw The Business Show take place 28-29 September 2022. The event pushed occupancy and average daily rate (ADR) to peak levels for the month, with ADR sitting at an impressive of US$382 on the 29th and occupancy reaching 87% on the 28th.

In 2022, Indonesia was home to one of the most significant events in the global political calendar, the G20 summit. Taking place in Bali between 15-16 November, the conference met expectations with a significant impact on the hotel sector. As delegations descended on an island so commonly associated with leisure travel, revenue per available room (RevPAR) peaked in November at US$157.40.  

Staying on the topic of the G20 Summit, we can look ahead and see the effects on the next Asian host city, New Delhi. This year’s conference is scheduled to take place 9-10 September with a small spike in occupancy on the books already visible. Given the amount of time until the summit, 15% this early in the year is healthy.

Cultural festivals and celebrations draw in guests from near and far

Festivals, celebrations and religious observances are a key driver of heads in beds across Asia. Much of this demand can be associated to domestic travel with people gathering to be close to family and friends. The demand can also be attributed to locals looking to break from their routine, and in some instances, even international tourists looking to be a part of cultural traditions.

Songkran is the Thai New Year celebration, an event which sees several festivals occur throughout the country. The holiday is marked on 13 April each year with the festivities carrying through until 15 April.

As of 27 March, Bangkok’s occupancy on the books reflected those festivities with a peaking of 54% for 14 April. Once the date actualizes, we would expect to see levels rise even further. Another spike can be observed on 29 May with demand increasing to 40%, a direct result of the Climate and Clean Air Conference 2023 set to take place at the United Nations Conference Centre.

Good Friday celebrations also have an impact in certain SE Asian countries, one of which is Singapore, a nation with a fairly large Christian population. As of 27 March, occupancy on the books was already at 64% for 7 April with further pickup expected during the week of Easter.

Another market that benefits strongly from Easter celebrations is the capital of the Philippines, Manila. When reviewing historical performance, we can see that Easter played a big part in the success of Manila’s hotel performance for April 2022 with ADR peaking at US$96.31 on Good Friday. This should serve as a good indicator for another impactful holiday in 2023.

The return of big-name acts is music to the ears of hoteliers

It isn’t just MICE and cultural events that have benefited the region. The return of big-name acts from the music world have contributed as well. The capital of Indonesia, Jakarta, welcomed pop icon Justin Bieber to the city in November 2022, which resulted in ADR reaching US$65 the night prior to the concert and US$63 the day of the show. RevPAR also peaked for the month as a result of Bieber’s arrival, coming in at US$49.85 on 2 November. Although this lift in rates was not as extreme when large-scale music events take place around the globe, the impact on SE Asia was still noticeable.

Conclusion

Throughout recent months, leisure demand has led the charge in hotel recovery across many Asian nations. Yet, as 2022 drew to a close, the trend began to shift with more travelers being drawn in by large scale events of many types. Looking ahead to the remainder of 2023, it is evident that hoteliers are likely to continue to benefit from both travel segments.