Research Note: Using Demand Determinants to Anticipate Fluctuations in Hotel Occupancy

A logistic regression model is used to identify the determinants that influence periods of expanding and contracting occupancy growth rates for various hotel categories in Hong Kong. Tourist incomes are found to impact in different ways, depending on the category of hotel. The cycles of income growth in tourist origin countries have a greater impact on high tariff B and medium tariff hotels than on more expensive high tariff A hotels. In examining the applicability of real and nominal exchange rates to tourist hotel selections, it is found that nominal exchange rates are significant only in the case of high tariff A hotels, with a marginal probability of 0.76%. This implies that a 1% exchange rate appreciation in the tourist origin country will increase the expansion period by 0.76% in the case of high tariff A hotels.