Hotel industry’s revenue per room fell 53 percent year-on-year during January-September due to an adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to property consultant JLL India. ”India’s hospitality industry has witnessed a decline of 52.8 percent in Revenue Per Available Room (RevPAR) during January to September 2020 over the same period last year due to the impact of COVID-19 pandemic,” JLL India said in a statement.

According to JLL’s Hotel Momentum India (HMI) Q3 2020, a quarterly hospitality sector monitor, the brand signings declined 19 percent in Q3 2020 over Q3 2019. But, international operators signed a greater number of keys than domestic ones. All key 11 markets in India reported a decrease in RevPAR performance in Q3 2020 over the same period last year. Bengaluru saw the sharpest decline in RevPAR in Q3 2020, with 88.1 percent fall over the same period in the previous year.

”Investors are taking interest in exploring operational hotel opportunities both in business and in leisure locations. With the phased unlocking of the economy in the third quarter of 2020, we are witnessing gradual growth in demand particularly in leisure market with weekend occupancy spikes,” said Jaideep Dang, Managing Director, Hotels & Hospitality Group (India), JLL.

Mumbai continues to be the RevPAR leader in absolute terms, despite the decline of RevPAR by 71.7 percent in Q3 2020 compared to the same period last year. Other cities, which witnessed sharp declines in RevPAR, include Pune (86.2 percent), Kolkata (82.6 percent) and Goa (78.8 percent).