Are soaring gas prices making a dent in the rest of travel, especially the hotel business? You betcha, says a new survey by PriceWaterhouseCoopers.
The study found that increases in fuel prices will “negatively impact U.S. lodging demand between Memorial Day and Labor Day in 2007″ by an average of 4,000 rooms per night, assuming gasoline prices had remained at 2006 levels, or 25,000 rooms per night assuming gasoline prices had remained at 2005 levels.
This appears to directly contradict AAA’s rosy summer travel forecast and the ensuing stories that suggested gas prices were a non-factor.
So why should you care?
Because if people stay home, as PriceWaterhouseCoopers seems to suggest, then you might see some unexpected lodging rates — I won’t call them bargains — as the summer unfolds.
It may not be a buyer’s market for hotel rooms yet, but PWC’s recent finding that new hotel construction more than doubled last year from a year ago does make this observer wonder how much longer the record-high hotel rates can last.
Christopher Elliott is the author of Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals. Critics have called it “eye-opening” and “inspiring” — it’ll “grab your attention and won’t let go.” Order your copy now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes.
Elliott is consumer advocate 
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