One of the top destinations for Canadians is operating at full hotel capacity again, and there’s a new way to get there.
Air Transat on Thursday operated its first-ever flight from Montreal to San Francisco. The non-stop service will operate until the end of October with two flights per week, on Thursdays and Sundays.
“San Francisco is a breathtaking city, ideally located between the ocean and the mountains, and renowned for its outstanding cuisine,” said Joseph Adamo, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer, Transat. “We are very excited to open up a whole new world of discovery and sunshine to our customers with the addition of San Francisco as a second Californian destination for Air Transat.”
On May 16, Air Transat also inaugurated a non-stop service between Montreal and Los Angeles, which it will offer three times a week. This connectivity will allow travellers to very easily book a multi-destination flight to land in San Francisco, travel along picturesque Highway 1 (perhaps the world’s top drive) and depart from Los Angeles.
A drone view of Big Sur and the Bixby Bridge on Highway One in California. GEORGE COX PHOTO/UNSPLASH
The hotel scene in San Francisco is gearing up for summer following the best-performing month for city hotels since the start of the pandemic. Preliminary data reveal occupancy of available rooms in San Francisco reached 67.2% for the month of April and average daily room rates were $226.59 USD. Both are high-water marks since pandemic restrictions were put in place in March of 2020.
Hilton’s 1,024-room Parc 55 resumed operations this week, and three new highly anticipated hotels will welcome guests in June: 1 Hotel San Francisco, LUMA Hotel San Francisco and Beacon Grand (formerly Sir Francis Drake Hotel). A fourth new property, The Line SF, is slated to open in late summer.
“The opening of Hilton’s Parc 55 on May 19th in the heart of Union Square is perfectly timed to meet the steady increase in demand and occupancy we’re seeing heading into summer,” said Terry Lewis, general manager for the San Francisco Hilton Union Square complex. “This is just the latest sign of San Francisco’s resilience over the last two years, our accelerating recovery, and the hard work and dedication of our Hilton employees at every level who live out our Hilton values of light, warmth and hospitality.”
Hotel demand in San Francisco was up 118% in the first quarter of 2022, and hotel room revenues grew 263% compared to 2021. While demand was still down 48% compared to 2019, the second quarter of this year will be San Francisco’s most active conference period, resulting in estimated direct spending of $117.2 million. More than 72,500 attendees are expected to visit San Francisco for meetings such as RIMS Riskworld and the RSA Security Conference from March through May.
The San Francisco Suite at the Ritz Carlton, San Francisco. PHOTO COURTESY RITZ CARLTON SAN FRANCISCO
The San Francisco International Airport (SFO) anticipates a busy summer travel season, forecasting the highest levels of passenger traffic since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The summer travel season will begin in earnest on Friday, May 27, 2022, with approximately 120,000 forecasted passengers traveling through SFO. In total, 12 million travelers are expected at SFO between Memorial Day and Labour Day, which constitute about 67% of pre-pandemic levels.
“From hotel openings to events such as PRIDE and the San Francisco Jazz Festival to the unveiling of Presidio Tunnels Tops in July, San Francisco is vibrant and bustling with activity this summer,” said Joe D’Alessandro, president and CEO of San Francisco Travel. “Visitors can expect to be spoiled for choice on things to do and where to stay in the city. In the last few years, there has been tremendous investment in new hotels such as citizenM, Kimpton Alton Hotel and Hyatt Regency San Francisco Downtown SOMA and millions spent on renovations at iconic properties such as The St. Regis and The Clift.”
By the end of 2022, seven new branded and independent hotels will have debuted in San Francisco. For detailed information on 2022 and 2021 hotel openings and renovations, click here or visit www.sftravel.com/media.
