6 Nations, music acts lifting Cardiff’s hotel bookings for 2022

Late last year, we utilized Forward STAR to outline the impact of major events on Cardiff’s hotel bookings, especially during traditionally low performance periods. Now several months later, with a more stabilized pandemic situation, we see even greater impact building from 6 Nations as well as concerts from the Stereophonics and Ed Sheeran.

6 Nations pushing levels the furthest

Branded as “Rugby’s Greatest Championship,” the 6 Nations features matches throughout February and March each year with England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, France and Italy battling for supremacy. As home to Welsh international rugby, it is to be expected that Cardiff’s hotel occupancy on the books spikes when Scotland, France and Italy visit in early 2022. One particularly interesting observation shows occupancy on the books for the fixture versus Italy at just 45% compared with 67% for the match against Scotland and 79% for the game against France.

When looking at levels across all 6 Nations host markets, Cardiff leads the way for the duration of the tournament.

Stereophonics & Ed Sheeran providing lifts as well

In a recent piece, we highlighted the impact of music acts on Europe’s hotel bookings later this year. Cardiff is certainly included in that crowd with two performances lifting forward demand in May and June 2022.

The Welsh capital will welcome home its national treasure, Stereophonics, on 17-18 June as the group plays to what is likely to be a sold-out Principality Stadium. These concerts were originally scheduled for December 2021, but due to growing concerns around the Omicron variant, the events were postponed until mid-2022. Across these two days, we see occupancy on the books reaching 50%. Pickup, the uptake in bookings from one reporting period to the next, jumps to as high as 38%.

The city is also showing early uptake for Ed Sheeran’s “+ - = ÷ x” tour with occupancy on the books touching 67% on 27 May. As that event date draws nearer, expect levels to rise further.

Conclusion

Long-term, Cardiff’s hotel occupancy on the books remains low, but the impact from these large-scale events reflect a real desire amongst event goers to travel, and most importantly, include an overnight stay in their plans. When we move into the spring and summer months, we would expect demand to pick up more without so much reliance on major events. 

Click for more information on Forward STAR.

For more industry information each day, follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.