One of the reasons I have been so bullish on the U.S. economy has been the profound and sustained growth in employment in the Leisure and Hospitality sector. Unless you are finishing out the bucket list, most people limit travel and entertainment spending when they are pessimistic about the future, but spend readily when times are good. Based on Leisure and Travel employment, times today are not good, they are GREAT.
The following graph shows U.S. Leisure and Hospitality employment counts since 2000. There are more workers employed today in that segment than any time in history.
In the 12 months ending November 2014, employment in the Leisure and Hospitality sector rose 2.61 percent versus 1.99 percent for total U.S. employment – on a seasonally-adjusted annualized rate. The Leisure and Hospitality sector now accounts for 10.56 percent of all U.S. jobs compared to 9.51 percent a decade ago.
In Florida, Leisure and Hospitality jobs make up 13.8 percent of total employment (one out of every 7.25 jobs) and increased by 3.0 percent in the latest 12 months while total employment rose 2.7 percent. In Hawaii, this segment represents 18.4 percent of employment (almost one out of every five jobs) and grew at a 3.9 percent rate in the latest 12 months. Statewide, total employment in Hawaii grew just 1.06 percent.
Now throw in $2 and change gasoline and the stage is set for a strong travel year in 2015. So where best to go? While that is truly a subjective issue, both the U.S. News and World Report and Lonely Planet have come up with their top destinations – and they are quite diverse.
For the U.S. News and World Report article click http://travel.usnews.com/Rankings/best_usa_vacations/
To read the entire report and ranking from Lonely Planet click http://blog.chron.com/traveler/2014/12/lonely-planet-names-top-10-u-s-destinations-for-2015/#28971101=0
Regardless where you head off on vacation in 2015, millions of Americans will join you.
The impact on demand for real estate – from restaurants to resorts — will continue to grow. No doubt this has impacted hotel revenues and occupancy rates, with the Average Daily Rate (ADR) up 4.1 percent in the past year and occupancy rates up 5 percent to 67.7 percent according to STR Global.
What is my top destination for 2015? Once again it has to be St John in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Warm crystal clear water, some of the top beaches in the world and very few people (two thirds of the island is a National Park and will never be developed or built on). The following picture pretty much says it all.
Email back your top 2015 U.S. travel destination.
Safe travels.
Ted