The average treatment rate for spas was $146, a decline of 10 percent for the first mine months of 2008, reported Smith Travel Research’s Spa STAR performance survey.
But during the same period, the average daily rate for hotels decreased 17 percent to $240.
"As spa and hotel operators in the upper end of the market are looking for the next winning formula and are trying to attract a more value conscious market it should come as no surprise that ADR and ATR are falling in lock step," said Jan Freitag, VP at STR. "Unfortunately, the utilization rates of treatment room hours and guest rooms were also falling."
"The rate of decline in the treatment room utilization is so much less than in the guest room occupancy, which could be an indicator of a better capture rate of hotel guests or more promotions to attract a local audience," Freitag said.
By David Wilkening
