SAM Magazine-Denver, Mar. 16, 2010-Lodging occupancy through February nudged up a scant 0.03 percent ahead of last season, continuing a very slow trend toward growth, according to the most recent Mountain Travel Research Program report. This "indicates the reversal of a long term down cycle," noted Ralf Garrison, founder and director of MTRiP. The report is based on data from 15 mountain resort communities in the Western U.S. and Canada.

February 2010 occupancy was up 2.7 percent compared to February 2009, the second consecutive year-over-year increase. In addition, reservations taken in February for arrival in February through July are up 12.7 percent compared to 2009, a continuation of the stronger pace seen in the past few months. However, this growth has been fueled by rate cutting: average room rates declined by 6.6 percent.

That trend is expected to continue. Bookings for March 2010 are up 5.4 percent compared to the same month last year, though the average room rate for those bookings is down 6 percent. "With the end of season in sight and anecdotal reports indicating decent bookings in March, we remain optimistic that the season will finish with better overall occupancies than last year," said Garrison.

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