Holiday Inn-owner InterContinental Hotels said today it expects revenue per available room (RevPAR) to plunge 80% in April and said the coronavirus crisis was the "biggest challenge the hotel industry has ever faced".
The UK-based company said the occupancy levels dropped to historic lows in March and April, with first-quarter global RevPAR slumping 25%.
Travel and leisure businesses have been among the worst hit by the pandemic, with hundred of billions of dollars in business trips and holidays cancelled as countries impose sweeping restrictions.
The Crowne Plaza, Regent and Hualuxe operator said around 15% of its estate was closed by the end of April, with half its hotels in Europe, Middle East, Asia and Africa being shut.
"In the US, our biggest market, our franchise portfolio of 3,750 mainstream hotels has seen lower levels of RevPAR decline than the industry, and as at the end of April we had 90% of our estate open," the British hotel operator said.
RevPAR from its Greater China hotels plunged 65.3%, reflecting the impact of the outbreak in January, IHG said.
But it added that occupancy levels are now running in the mid-20% range, up from around 5% in mid-February.
Last month, the company said it had raised £600m from Bank of England loans under the UK government's coronavirus aid scheme. It had also announced $150m in cost cuts earlier this year.
