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1. Vaccine Boosters Approved for US Adults
The FDA has approved booster shots of both the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines for all adults starting as soon as this weekend, CNBC reports. The booster approval comes as health officials observe an increase in hospitalizations among those who are vaccinated.
“This emergency use authorization comes at a critical time as we enter the winter months and face increasing COVID-19 case counts and hospitalizations across the country,” Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel said in a statement.
2. Austria Announces Lockdown, EU's First Vaccine Mandate
Officials in Austria are imposing a 10-day lockdown on their population — following an earlier lockdown of just unvaccinated people — along with "the first national vaccine mandate to be announced in a Western democracy," according to the New York Times.
The country has one of the highest rates of COVID-19 cases across Europe, reporting 14,212 new cases on Thursday. It also has one of the lowest vaccination rates on the continent, with just 66% immunized.
3. How Hotels Are Reworking Breakfast
Challenges hoteliers face as demand returns include guest expectations for the return of amenities, namely hotel breakfast, to pre-pandemic norms, as owners balk at adding costs to their balance sheets. HNN's Dana Miller took a look at how hotels are evolving breakfast offerings in that climate, noting owners and brands are opting for a quality-over-quantity approach.
Essex Hotel Management Vice President of Operations John Kattato said it's been important to scale back the number of breakfast items offered and to cut back on those that were expensive and time consuming to prepare.
"When Hampton rolled out smoothies and some of those things... [it] seemed like a great idea but, again, I don't think those were ever intended to be mass-produced and left out for some period of time," he said.
4. Apple Hospitality Buys Three-Hotel Portfolio
Executives at Apple Hospitality REIT have announced the purchase of a three hotel portfolio for $126 million, according to a news release. The properties in the deal include two in Fort Worth, Texas — the 157-room Hilton Garden Inn Fort Worth Medical Center for $29.5 million and the 112-room Homewood Suites by Hilton Fort Worth Medical Center for $21.5 million — along with the 243-room Hampton Inn & Suites by Hilton Portland Pearl District in Portland, Oregon, for $75 million
In the release, Apple Hospitality President of Real Estate and Investments Nelson Knight said the purchases were made off market.
5. US Hotels Key Performance Metrics Improve
While demand remained lower than 2019 levels, U.S. hotels reported better performance in October than September, according to CoStar's hospitality analytics firm STR.
Occupancy for the month was 62.9%, down 8.8% compared to October 2019. Average daily rate did beat out 2019 levels, though, up 1.2% to $134.78, and revenue per available room was down 7.6% to $84.75.