It's the Great Lockup, as hotel rooms stay closed

Hotel availability is 'capped' due to chronic staff shortages. (Image: IHG)

Thu, 17 Nov 2022

The hotel sector continued to climb out of the covid abyss last month, with occupancy getting back to 96% of comparable pre-covid levels. However, staff shortages are limiting the number of available rooms ahead of the summer period.That meant a slowdown in revenue per available room (RevPAR) for the month, particularly in Auckland, Rotorua and Queenstown, where RevPAR is still below 2019 levels, and tourists from outside New Zealand or Australia are still largely absent.Occupancy levels averaged out to about 65%, compared to 80% in October 201...

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