Empirical modeling of hotel occupancy rate with dynamic panel data

Abstract

The previous research studies used mainly the occupancy rate as one of the key indicators of hotel performance. As the hotel occupancy rate varies both throughout the year and for different types of hotels, the use of panel data is more appropriate and more comprehensive compared to the cross-sectional data or time series, which have so far been most commonly used in similar research. Also, the previous research did not take into account the great heterogeneity among the analyzed hotels, nor the correlation of the occupancy rate in relation to its past values. By using the generalized method of moments within the dynamic panel data model, it is possible to take both properties into account. The analyzed data pertain to the hotel industry of Spain. Specifically, the given panel data include a sample of 49 hotels observed over a period of 12 years. The application of dynamic panel analysis shows that the values of hotel occupancy rate are influenced by the values of hotel occupancy rate with a lag one, as well as the values of total marketing expenses with a lag one. It was further determined that the values of incentive management fees, as well as the average daily rate and the consumer price index also have an impact on the observed variable. We are convinced that the presented analysis results will be of significant benefit to hotel managers.