After three consecutive month-over-month increases, the overall number of U.S. rooms in construction fell slightly in March. Among the chain scale segments, luxury shows the highest number of rooms as a percentage of existing supply at 5.2%.

Rockefeller Center is preparing to open its first hotel, the latest sign that Midtown Manhattan’s largest office landlords are leaning into hospitality and entertainment as remote work reduces demand for office space. Aspen Hospitality plans to convert 10 floors of vacant office space above the NBC “Today” show studios into a luxury hotel. Rockefeller Center was a natural choice for Aspen Hospitality, because its owner, the Chicago-based Crown family, co-owns the complex with New York-based real-estate developer Tishman Speyer.

U.S. hotel gross operating profit per available room exceeded the pre-pandemic comparable and was the highest since October, according to STR’s February 2023 profit and loss data release for February. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization was the only key bottom-line metric on a per-available-room basis to come in lower than February 2019.

The number of global travelers increased to nearly 7 billion in 2022, a 54% increase from the prior year. But 2022 figures came in about 26% less than 2019.

Cancellations were a major headache for travelers in 2022 with about 181,000 flights scrapped by the largest U.S. airlines. Only 2001, following the 9/11 attacks, and 2020, the start of the pandemic, had more flight cancellations over the past two decades.

Airlines say red-hot travel demand is driving higher prices. The average U.S. round-trip ticket price booked in February was $571, up 23% from a year earlier and 8% from January.

Despite a recent jump in the hospitality sector’s hiring, hotels and restaurants are still understaffed. The accommodation and food-services sector had nearly 1.5 million job openings as of January.

Blackstone has made a big bet acquiring meetings and events technology provider Cvent for $4.6 billion. A fully-owned unit of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority will become a significant minority investor along with Blackstone in the transaction.

The U.S. had 38,900 branded residences across more than 200 developments at the end of last year, a 40% increase from 2010. Buyers pay an average 30% premium to purchase hotel-branded residences with about 80% of branded residences affiliated, and usually co-located with, a hotel.

Private equity firm KSL Capital Partners has acquired the Martin Resorts Collection and its five independent, boutique hotels. The five hotels totaling 346 rooms are located on California’s central coast between Los Angeles and San Francisco.