As people in the US continue to be vaccinated, the demand for travel is increasing.
Christopher Nassetta, CEO of Hilton, told CNBC Tuesday the company had a record number of bookings over the Memorial Day holiday weekend last Saturday.
“We had a blockbuster weekend,” said Nassetta in an interview with “Squawk Box”. “On Saturday evening we were almost 93% occupied in the USA, which is certainly the best since the Covid break-in.”
Nassetta said summer reservations exceeded the company’s 2019 bookings.
“Our bookings for this summer are higher at this point than they were in 2019,” said Nassetta. “People get out, they feel safer as vaccination rates go up and it should be a really good summer to travel.”
The airlines are also seeing an upturn in business.
“There is a feeling that there is a lot of catching up to do. It is very encouraging to see that real bookings are being made with customers,” Ben Baldanza, former CEO of Spirit Airlines, told CNBC’s “Power Lunch” on Friday.
The Hilton CEO expects an increase in bookings over the next two years, including for business travel.
“I’d bet a lot that business, group, and leisure travel will be back where it was in 2019 and growing beyond ’23 and beyond,” said Nassetta.
Hilton is also doing well in China, where the number of daily Covid-19 cases has fallen significantly from its peak.
“This year we will have one of the best years in China we have ever had because it is ahead of the curve compared to the US and other parts of the world,” said Nassetta.
