MARCH KEY FIGURES

Accommodation with 15 rooms or more		Dec Qtr 2012	Mar Qtr 2013	Dec 12 to Mar Qtr 13	Mar Qtr 12 to Mar Qtr 13
Trend
	Takings from accommodation ($m)	2246.4	2245.8	0.0%	1.3%
	Room occupancy rate (%)	65.5	65.3	-0.2 pts	-0.7 pts
Seasonally Adjusted
	Takings from accommodation ($m)	2248.3	2242.6	-0.3%	0.4%
	Room occupancy rate (%)	65.4	65.3	-0.1 pts	-0.8 pts

Source(s): Tourist Accommodation, Australia

Source(s): Tourist Accommodation, Australia

MARCH KEY POINTS


ACCOMMODATION TAKINGS

• In the March quarter 2013, the trend estimate of total accommodation takings for hotels, motels and serviced apartments with 15 or more rooms remained flat at $2245.8 million compared with the December quarter 2012 estimate of $2246.4 million.
• Over the same period, the seasonally adjusted estimate decreased by 0.3% to $2242.6 million.
• The largest increase in accommodation takings in trend terms was the Northern Territory (3.7%), which may be a result of the multi-billion dollar gas projects in the area.
• Western Australia recorded the largest decrease of all states and territories (-1.5%). A likely cause may be the slowdown of the mining sector.

ROOM OCCUPANCY RATE

• The March quarter 2013 trend estimate room occupancy rate for hotels, motels and serviced apartments with 15 or more rooms decreased by 0.2 percentage points to 65.3% compared with the December quarter 2012.
• Over the same period, the seasonally adjusted estimate decreased by 0.1 percentage points to 65.3%.
• The largest increase in room occupancy rate in trend terms was in the Northern Territory (1.2 percentage points) and the largest decrease was in Western Australia (-1.1 percentage points). This is consistent with the movements in accommodation takings.

NOTES

FORTHCOMING ISSUES

ISSUE (QUARTER)	Release Date
June 2013	26 September 2013

ABOUT THIS ISSUE

This issue presents results from the March quarter 2013 Survey of Tourist Accommodation (STA) for the following categories of establishments:

• hotels and resorts with 15 or more rooms
• motels, private hotels and guest houses with 15 or more rooms
• serviced apartments with 15 or more units

CHANGES TO THIS PUBLICATION

From 1 July 2013 the collection frequency of the STA will change from quarterly to annual. The June quarter 2013 publication due for release on 26 September 2013 will be the final quarterly publication. Following this, data will be collected and released on a financial year basis commencing with 2013-14. The financial year release will contain four separate quarters of data.

Further information on the content and date for the annual data release will be available with the June quarter 2013 release in September.


INQUIRIES

For further information about these and related statistics, contact the National Information and Referral Service on 1300 135 070.


SUMMARY COMMENTARY


ORIGINAL

Hotels, motels and serviced apartments

This summary contains key findings for original estimates. Original series are impacted by seasonal variations and irregular or non-seasonal influences. Comparison between quarters should be made with caution.

Accommodation takings

In the March quarter 2013, accommodation takings were $2261.3 million for hotels, motels and serviced apartments with 15 or more rooms.

Accommodation takings in the March quarter 2013 for hotels, motels and serviced apartments with 15 or more rooms were highest in New South Wales ($733.5 million) and Queensland ($527.5 million). The Northern Territory recorded the lowest takings for the period ($52.3 million).

For Australia, the March quarter 2013 average takings per room night occupied were $168.38 for establishments with 15 or more rooms. This was 2.1% higher than the March quarter 2012 ($164.87).

Room occupancy rate

The room occupancy rate for hotels, motels and serviced apartments with 15 or more rooms was 65.5% in the March quarter 2013.

Traditionally, hotels have higher occupancy rates than motels or serviced apartments. Over the March quarter 2013, hotels had an occupancy rate of 71.5% compared with 57.2% for motels and 68.4% for serviced apartments.

Six out of the eight states and territories experienced a decrease in the occupancy rate of hotels, motels and serviced apartments with 15 or more rooms between the March quarter 2012 and the March quarter 2013. The Australian Capital Territory (69.9%) experienced the largest decrease (3.7 percentage points). Over the same period, occupancy in the Northern Territory (54.8%) and Victoria (69.8%) increased by 1.7 percentage points and 1.4 percentage points respectively.

Tasmania recorded the highest occupancy rate (70.6%) in the March quarter 2013 followed by the Australian Capital Territory (69.9%) and Victoria (69.8%). Over the same period, the Northern Territory experienced the lowest occupancy rate (54.8%).

Room nights Occupied

Room nights occupied were 13.4 million in the March quarter 2013 for hotels, motels and serviced apartments with 15 or more rooms.

New South Wales contributed the largest proportion (31.4%) of room nights occupied for hotels, motels and serviced apartments with 15 or more rooms, followed by Queensland (25.1%).

Average Length of Stay

The average length of stay over the March quarter 2013 for hotels, motels and serviced apartments with 15 or more rooms was 2.3 days. Queensland reported the longest average length of stay (2.7 days) followed by Western Australia (2.4 days). Tasmania had the shortest average length of stay (2.0 days).