Miami Beach hotels face Art Basel bookings catch-up

Written by Janetssy Lugo on November 26, 2024

Art Basel Miami Beach will be taking over the Miami Beach Convention Center from Dec. 6-8 with vast attendance. Despite forward-looking hotel booking levels in Miami Beach that today are showcasing low percentages, numbers are expected to increase as the famed art fair approaches.

As shared by CoStar, a global provider of real estate data, analytics and news, hotel booking data as of Nov. 11 on Miami Beach occupancy on the books showcases 57.9% of rooms filled for Dec. 6, 53.4% for Dec. 7 and 42.6% for Dec. 8.

“The closer you get to the event,” said Michael Stathokostopoulos, senior director of hospitality analytics at CoStar Group, “the more people are booking, and then you get closer to what you had last year…. In my experience, that event specifically, Art Basel, it’s a very strong event for Miami Beach.”

Booking numbers are changing every day, he said, and as a result it’s not easy to compare this year’s current expected numbers with last year’s actual booking numbers.

“We do see some softness compared to last year, but my estimate would be very similar to what happened last year in terms of bookings,” he said. “At least, this is based on my understanding, on what’s happening in the market.”

Last year’s occupancy rates for the 2023 edition of Art Basel, as shared by CoStar, showcased a 90.8% occupancy rate and an average daily room rate of $605.82 on Dec. 8, the first night of the art fair; 88.7% occupancy rate and an average daily rate of $531.86 on Dec. 9; and 75.7% occupancy rate with an average daily room rate of $291.25 on Dec. 10.

December, said Mr. Stathokostopoulos, is typically the city’s third-highest month for both bookings and rates. Miami Beach has two major events during the month: Art Basel and New Year’s celebrations.

“The occupancy in the market [for December of last year],” he said, “it’s close to 71%-72%. That’s the occupancy for the whole market in December, and hotel rates were close to $380 for the whole market. The specific days [of Art Basel] though, occupancies are close to 88% and rates are close to $590.”

It is not atypical, said Mr. Stathokostopoulos, for such average rates when the city has strong events in the month.

However, room rates have softened in Miami Beach along with other leisure markets.

“We do see a little bit of softness for the market this year, especially in terms of, I would say, rates,” he said. “Rates may end up charging close to the same, maybe 1% or 2% below, but nothing material. You may end up again with $590, $585, $600 as the average rate for the three days.

“Demand for room nights in the market is a little bit positive. Maybe 2% positive, 1% positive. Again, small numbers. Overall, the effect is a little bit more positive occupancy, a little bit less negative rate. The net effect is going to be close to what you had last year.”

Additionally, factors such as lodging options for travelers, cruising and international travel have broadened and impacted the hotel market.

“In general,” said Mr. Stathokostopoulos, “we’ve seen softening in a number of Florida markets, because there’s an increasing number of people who are substituting Florida for international travel, they’re substituting Florida with cruises, and also some people, they also do alternative accommodations… like Airbnb, etc. They are growing, and people are moving away, sometimes, from traditional lodging options.”