US hotels have logged 18 straight weeks of year-over-year RevPAR growth, CoStar data shows, with rates up 3.5% in mid-August and San Diego posting a 22.8% revenue surge.
Cover image: Atlanta Marriott Marquis hotel tower illuminated at night — photo by Warren LeMay from Cincinnati, OH, United States, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
US hotel RevPAR growth has now run for 18 consecutive weeks, according to weekly benchmarking data from CoStar, the analytics group behind STR. For the week ending 15 August 2026, US occupancy reached 68%, up 2.6% year over year, while average daily rate (ADR — the average price paid per occupied room) rose 3.5% to $163.56. Revenue per available room (RevPAR — rooms revenue divided by all available rooms, the industry’s headline health metric) climbed 6.2% to $111.29.
The streak, stretching back to mid-April, has been remarkably consistent: RevPAR rose 7.2% in the week ending 8 August and 7.3% the week before. With CoStar and Tourism Economics having upgraded their full-year 2026 US forecast in June, the question is how much longer pricing power can hold — and who is really paying for it.
How long is the US hotel growth streak?
The 15 August print marked the industry’s 18th straight week of positive year-over-year comparisons, per CoStar. The pace eased slightly from the two prior weeks as the summer leisure season wound down, but every headline metric stayed positive.
| Week ending | Occupancy | ADR | RevPAR | RevPAR YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Aug 2026 | 71.3% (+2.6%) | $168.82 (+4.5%) | $120.45 | +7.3% |
| 8 Aug 2026 | 70.0% (+3.0%) | $166.85 (+4.1%) | $116.77 | +7.2% |
| 15 Aug 2026 | 68.0% (+2.6%) | $163.56 (+3.5%) | $111.29 | +6.2% |
Source: CoStar weekly US hotel results, all comparisons year over year.
Which cities are driving hotel rate growth?
The streak is being powered less by a uniform national tide than by a rotating cast of event-fuelled markets — a pattern consistent with how dynamic hotel pricing concentrates rate gains around compression nights.
- San Diego was the stand-out in the week ending 15 August: ADR jumped 12.6% to $249.71 and RevPAR surged 22.8% to $201.10, lifted by the LPL Focus 2026 conference and concerts by Jason Aldean and Luke Bryan, per CoStar.
- Tampa posted the only double-digit occupancy gain in the top 25 that week (+11.7% to 64.9%), helped by the DoDIIS Worldwide defence-intelligence conference.
- Philadelphia led the prior week (ending 8 August) with occupancy up 14.2% to 74.6% and RevPAR up 27.4% to $116.29; Chicago booked the largest ADR lift, +15.2% to $206.21.
- In the week ending 1 August, Philadelphia’s RevPAR soared 32.1% on two Morgan Wallen concerts, while St. Louis occupancy climbed 15.1% to 75.4%.
The flip side: Miami (RevPAR −8.5%) and Nashville (ADR −4.1%) declined in the week ending 8 August, and Las Vegas posted the steepest slide in the week ending 1 August, with RevPAR down 17.1% to $96.63 as occupancy fell 11.7%. Growth is real, but it is unevenly distributed.
Why are hotel rates still rising in 2026?
Three forces are doing most of the work. First, group and business travel keeps recovering. The Global Business Travel Association projects worldwide business-travel spending will hit a record $1.71 trillion in 2026, up 7.2% year over year — and GBTA notes rising prices, not just trip volumes, are driving the total. Conference-driven spikes in San Diego, Tampa and Chicago show that demand landing directly on hotel ledgers.
Second, the growth is K-shaped by price tier. When CoStar and Tourism Economics upgraded their 2026 US outlook in June — to 2.8% full-year RevPAR growth on 2% ADR growth and 62.8% occupancy — they forecast luxury hotels to lead all chain scales with RevPAR up 5.3%, nearly double the national pace. Premium and group-oriented properties are commanding rate; budget-tier operators, more exposed to cost-squeezed domestic leisure travellers, are growing far more slowly. CoStar’s Jan Freitag cautioned that the overall outlook “remains complex” amid macroeconomic uncertainty.
Third, summer performance has been running well ahead of that full-year forecast — weekly RevPAR gains of 6–7% against a 2.8% annual projection. That momentum echoes what the big brands reported at mid-year: Hilton’s Q2 2026 results similarly leaned on rate strength rather than occupancy alone.
Will hotel prices keep going up this autumn?
For travellers booking autumn stays, the read-through is:
- Check the events calendar before you pick dates. The biggest rate spikes in CoStar’s data were conference and concert weeks. Shifting a city break by a few days can dodge a compression night.
- Book earlier in strong markets. With 18 weeks of rising RevPAR, hoteliers have little incentive to discount in cities with healthy group calendars.
- Look at softer markets. Las Vegas, Miami and Nashville all posted declines in recent weeks — that is where deal potential lives this autumn.
- Compare booking channels. When rates are firm, loyalty-rate discounts and perks matter more; see our guide to direct booking versus OTAs.
What does the streak mean for hotel investors?
An 18-week run of rate-led RevPAR growth is exactly the profile investors favour: ADR gains flow to margins more efficiently than occupancy gains. The June forecast upgrade — with international inbound travel projected up 3.4% — adds a tailwind for gateway and luxury assets. The caveat is dispersion: with top-25 markets swinging from +32% to −17% RevPAR in a single week, asset selection and event calendars now matter more than the national average.
Frequently asked questions
What is RevPAR and why does it matter?
RevPAR, or revenue per available room, is total rooms revenue divided by all available rooms, whether sold or not. It combines occupancy and average daily rate into one number, making it the hotel industry’s standard health metric. Rising RevPAR driven by rate, as in the current US streak, is especially profitable because higher prices carry almost no extra operating cost.
How long have US hotels been growing?
CoStar’s weekly data shows 18 consecutive weeks of year-over-year RevPAR growth through the week ending 15 August 2026, a run stretching back to mid-April. Recent weekly gains were 7.3% (week ending 1 August), 7.2% (8 August) and 6.2% (15 August), with rate growth contributing more than occupancy in each week.
Which US cities have the fastest-rising hotel rates?
In the week ending 15 August 2026, San Diego led the top 25 markets with ADR up 12.6% to $249.71 and RevPAR up 22.8%, boosted by a major conference and stadium concerts. Philadelphia, Chicago and St. Louis led earlier August weeks. By contrast, Las Vegas, Miami and Nashville all posted year-over-year declines in recent weeks.
Are hotel prices going up for everyone?
No — growth is K-shaped. CoStar and Tourism Economics forecast luxury hotels to lead 2026 with RevPAR up 5.3%, nearly double the projected 2.8% national average, powered by premium leisure, group and business demand. Budget-tier hotels, which depend on more price-sensitive domestic travellers, are expected to grow much more slowly.
Should I book my autumn hotel stay now?
In strong markets with busy conference and event calendars, yes — sustained RevPAR growth gives hotels little reason to discount, so booking early usually beats waiting. In softer markets such as Las Vegas or Miami, which posted recent declines, flexible travellers may find better value closer to travel dates or by shifting stays away from event weeks.
Sources
- Hotel News Resource — U.S. Hotel Occupancy, Rates and RevPAR Rise for 18th Straight Week
- Hospitality Net — U.S. hotel results for week ending 8 August
- Hospitality Net — U.S. hotel results for week ending 1 August
- Hotel Dive — CoStar, Tourism Economics upgrade US RevPAR forecast for 2026
- GBTA — Global Business Travel Spending to Hit Record $1.71 Trillion in 2026
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