Hotel Rates in L.A. County Up 2% in May

Hoteliers continued to drive up room prices in the Los Angeles area during May to take advantage of steady travel demand for the region, tourism officials said. The average price per night at Los Angeles County hotels for the month grew 2% to $115.81 from $113.10 a year ago, according to PKF Consulting, which tracks the region’s hospitality industry. In April, hotels raised rates 4% from a year earlier. “They’re positioning their rates for summer high demand,” said Michael Collins, with the Los Angeles Convention & Visitors Bureau. Meanwhile, hotel occupancy in May was nearly flat at about 73%, edging up one-tenth of a percent over last year, PKF said. In Orange County, both hotel rates and occupancy fell markedly in May compared with the previous year. Rates dropped nearly 4% to $97.24, while occupancy plunged from 72% to 66%. Tourism officials have blamed both trends on extensive road construction in Anaheim, the home of Disneyland.