Most Americans Booked Hotel Stays In 2002: Poll

NATIONAL REPORT— Nearly three-quarters of the population stayed in a hotel room over the past 12 months, according to a recent eBrain Market Research Online Poll. The reasons why they traveled and where they stayed vary almost as much as the population, the poll indicates. Those Americans who stayed in a hotel in the past year did so largely for personal reasons, according to Tim Herbert, director of research for eBrain. Herbert added that people are multitasking when it comes to travel, with 26% of the poll’s respondents, mostly men, combining work and leisure during hotel stays in the past year. Only 8% of respondents said business or work was the primary reason for a hotel stay in the last 12 months. People were also more likely than not to share a hotel room as only 20% said they stayed solo on their last trip, the poll shows. Additionally, the poll reveals that Americans with annual incomes of $75,000 or higher take more business trips, are more likely to pair personal and business stays and are most likely to stay in a large hotel chain. Marriott enjoys the highest degree of loyalty among hotel chains from this demographic with 15% saying they stayed at a Marriott hotel the last time they traveled, according to the poll. Holiday Inn was the overall favorite, with 10% of all respondents claiming to have stayed there on their most recent trip. But regardless of brand loyalty, location was the primary reason to choose a hotel for 44% of those surveyed, Herbert reported. The eBrain Online Poll was fielded via a web-based survey to a national sample of 1,000 U.S. households during the week of Aug. 26, 2002.