As of May 20, seven out of 10 hotel rooms in the US were sitting empty and thousands of hotels are completely closed, according to the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA). Hotels have lost more than $25 billion in room revenue since the start of the pandemic, and 70% of hotel employees have been laid off or furloughed, per the AHLA. Empty hotels are desperately selling bonds for future discounted travel.
But as US states and other countries start to reopen, hotel companies are looking ahead to make travelers feel safe and to entice them into coming back to their properties.
Many major hotel brands, including Marriott — the world's biggest hotel company — Best Western, Hilton, and Hyatt Hotels, have pledged to abide by the AHLA's new Safe Stay guidelines for everything from contactless check-in to new cleaning standards and protocols.
