Check the latest global hospitality statistics for 2023, including review volume evolution, impact scores, and defining trends shaping the travel industry.

#1 Global Review Volume Growth Continues in Q1 2023

Q1 2023 review volume reached 80.2% of the pre-pandemic level and recorded a 31.7% increase compared to Q1 2022.

In Q1 2022, the review volume was 60.8% of 2019 reviews. At this accelerated pace, the review volume could surpass pre-pandemic numbers by the end of 2023.

Global Review Volume Evolution Q1 2019 2022 And 2023

Looking at the numbers provided by leading travel and tourism organizations, we see that review volume aligns with other recovery indicators. IATA reported that global air traffic was 84.2% in January and 84.9% in February 2023 of 2019. China’s decision to scrap the Zero-COVID policy mainly contributed to this growth.

Other indicators show a strong beginning. Based on Key Data's latest insights, the global ADR for Q1 2023 increased by 3.4%, occupancy by 17.6%, and RevPar by 21.6%.

#2 Positive Feedback is Steadily High

93% of global guest reviews are positive.

In 2022, 92% of all feedback was positive. Hoteliers prove that increasing guest satisfaction and experience remains a top priority in the post-pandemic scene.

A Live Survey Solution is a great way to reduce negative feedback. With an on-site survey, hoteliers can solve issues on the go, increasing guest satisfaction and preventing negative reviews.

#3 Service Improves Scores; WiFi Brings Lower Ratings

Impact Scores leverage all review data for hotels, and fill in the gaps between what people say and how that impacts the scores they leave. With the help of semantic analysis, we extract all relevant data from all reviews. This way, we can estimate the impact that, for example, room maintenance had on a performance score in a particular period. These scores reflect different semantic categories (Service, WiFi, Parking, Location, etc.)

Impact Scores are split into negative and positive. For each category, we show how many points you can lose or gain from your performance score.

Here are our key findings for Q1 2023:

The top and bottom three global impact scores give a general overview of what hotels must focus on to drive their performance. Service, Hotel, and Location were the categories that positively influenced hotel performance. On the other hand, WiFi, Price, and Room were negative impacts, decreasing performance.

We looked further into our data and found that specific subcategories significantly influenced a hotel's overall rating.

Guests were likelier to leave higher scores if the staff was friendly and the management team helpful. Boutique and Water Park hotels were popular in the category Hotel. For the Location, it was all about convenience based on the travelers’ needs and what they could sightsee nearby.

Conversely, a hotel could have received lower scores if the WiFi connection was poor or the property charged for WiFi. For the category Price, the value for what they paid was crucial for travelers. Maintenance and cleanliness were most likely to bring lower scores for the category Room.

#4 Travelers Still Look for Health & Safety Measures and Flexible Options

Criteo surveyed more than 12k travelers globally to see how they want to plan their travel experiences and what they expect from the travel industry in 2023. Here are a few findings:

• Travel budgets don’t shrink this year. Despite the price surge, travelers aren’t reducing their travel budgets in 2023. Instead, they are looking for ways to optimize their costs by paying more attention to deals and loyalty programs. Our analysis of 29.9 million guest reviews also confirms that price is on the top agenda for travelers. It’s the second factor that can bring lower ratings for a hotel, with guests more inclined to leave negative reviews when unsatisfied with the value or if an accommodation charges WiFi costs.

• Travelers still appreciate health & safety measures despite most of the world reopening. Our Q1 2023 analysis confirms these findings. Room maintenance and cleanliness are among the key features most likely to bring lower scores to a hotel.
  Keeping Up with the Ever-Changing Guest Expectations
  Jurys Inn started to use TrustYou at a very challenging time for the industry. During COVID-19, the platform allowed them to monitor their guests’ needs, identify new trends, and keep up with the evolving expectations around cleanliness.

• Flexibility is key. 59% of travelers consider the free cancellation policy when choosing a travel service, and 42% the refund options.

• A rising preference for seamless and customized vacations. In January 2023 only, the conversion rate for package tours grew by 96% compared to 2022 and 105% compared to January 2020, just before the lockdowns.

#5 Who Are Modern Travelers and How Will They Evolve in the Next Decade?

At the beginning of 2023, Amadeus launched a comprehensive research report on the behaviors that will define travel in the next decade.

Amadeus Traveler Tribes Report 2023

2033 Traveler Tribes, source: Traveler Tribes 2033 Report

Based on more than 10.3k survey replies, Amadeus identified four types of travelers:

• Pioneering Pathfinders - earning a higher-than-average income, most of the Pioneering Pathfinders are either Millenials or Gen Zs. They are calculated risk takers - not afraid of trying new things as long as they’ve done their research. This tribe is driven more than others to prioritize sustainability over comfort when traveling.

• Excited Experientialists - most travelers from this group don’t live with children and have a medium to high income. They base their traveling decisions on YOLO (You Only Live Once), often acting instinctually than rationally. They are comfortable with ambiguity and rely less on technology to manage their plans.

• Memory Makers - Gen X and Baby Boomers are among the most prominent age groups in this tribe, with low to medium incomes. Memory Makers are characterized by stability and are the most worried about change. Regarding technology, they use the essentials and are not as excited as other tribes about innovations or apps.

• Travel Tech-fluencers - these are Millenials or Gen Zs currently traveling for business purposes, with medium income. Their lifestyle is tech-driven, with most tech-fluencers owning a VR, using cryptocurrency, or using a wellness app. In 10 years, they plan to travel less for business and be among the first to try new ways of experiencing trips.

Happy travelers spend more, book again, and promote your brand. How do you increase your visitors' satisfaction as a hotel, destination, or booking platform?

Notes:

*The requested Q1 2023 top and bottom Impact Scores reflect the main semantic categories.

** Q1 2023 Impact Scores and Review Volume were requested at the beginning of April 2023. Due to the dynamic nature of the database with reviews and hotels being updated, the numbers may vary if data were requested at an earlier or later stage.

***the report includes rounded numbers for a clearer data representation.

Catalina Brinza is a social media and data enthusiast. At TrustYou, she's on a mission to bring the most out of travel and hospitality data. One day, she hopes to experience Japan's culture to its fullest.

TrustYou offers a powerful tool for the hospitality industry that helps attract more visitors and improve guest satisfaction. With the help of our all-in-one reputation management platform, you can collect and analyze feedback from guests, identify improvement areas and address issues promptly. This leads to increased guest satisfaction, positive reviews, and, ultimately, more bookings. Our guest experience solution platform allows you to engage with guests before, during, and after their stay, fostering a sense of connection and building trust.

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