Whether you're new to the discipline or a seasoned vet, you're inevitably going to run into an acronym or a measurement that you don't completely understand. How does RevPAR become Net RevPAR and then TRevPAR and finally GOPPAR? It can be quite confusing, and that's why we've compiled this list of terms to help you quickly find the definition and explanation you need.
A-Z
Artificial Intelligence
The ability of computer systems to perform tasks that normally require human intelligence, such as collecting and analyzing data and serving information across systems in real time.
Average Daily Rate (ADR)
A measure of the average rate paid for rooms sold; calculated by dividing room revenue by rooms sold.
Average Length of Stay (ALOS)
The total room nights in a hotel or segment divided by the number of reservations in the hotel or segment. Formula: Total occupied room nights / Total bookings.
Average Rate Index (ARI)
A metric used to determine whether the property is achieving its fair share of ADR compared to a specific group of hotels (i.e. a competitive set). It is calculated by taking the ADR of the property and dividing it by the ADR of the competitive set (competitive set data collected through a third-party provider such as STR). An ADR of above 1.00 indicates that the property is achieving more than its fair share, while below 1.00 suggests that the hotels in the competitive set are 'eating' into the properties' 'pie'. Note: Traditionally, hotel revenue managers prefer to multiply the number by 100 (or convert into a percentage).
Best Available Rate (BAR)
A commonly used base rate upon which all other priced segments are based. Also the common rate used for comparison between hotels.
Block Code
A code attached only to group rooms that are a part of a block.
Block Pricing
A non-yieldable rate given to a set number (or block) of rooms held for a particular group.
Booking Curve
An important tool for yielding that provides a visual representation of the pickup, number of bookings, availability and yielding capacity of the hotel over time.
Booking Engine
The technology that allows reservations to be made on a website.
Booking Window
The timeframe in which hotel reservations come into hotels for a particular stay date(s).
Budget
Refers to the annual budget prepared in late Fall that sets the financial plan for the property for the next calendar or fiscal year. It includes a daily occupancy, rate and RevPAR by major market segments and feeds into the financial budget for the property. The budget shows percent change vs. last year and previous year by month and quarter.
Capacity
The set number of rooms in a hotel.
Central Reservation System (CRS)
A system or an office that is used by hotels in one chain or organization, or created by a third-party vendor, used to maintain hotel information, inventories and rates and to manage the reservation process.
Channel Management
The techniques and systems used by hotels to update hotel information, room inventory and rates in each of the distribution channels.
Channels
Different methods by which a customer books/reserves a room.
Closed to Arrival (CTA)
An inventory control mechanism used by revenue managers meaning no new reservations can be taken for guests arriving on this date.
Commissions
The payments that a travel agent receives for each reservation made on their site.
Competitive Set
Consists of a group of hotels by which a property can compare itself to the group’s aggregate performance.
Conversion
The transition by a customer from shopping or gathering information to taking an action such as purchasing or making an inquiry.
Cost Per Occupied Room (CPOR)
Calculated by adding up all of the expenses associated with a room booking, including utilities and cleaning the room for the next guest. Allows hoteliers to determine the minimum rate that would make the booking profitable.
Cost of Acquisition
The fees and commissions associated with a booking across all channels, including voice, brand.com and OTA.
Day(s) Before Arrival (DBA)
The number of days before the stay date.
Demand
The amount of interest in a product.
Denial
A notification that the hotel has been shopped on the hotel's direct booking engine and a rate was not given because the hotel was sold out or a restriction was placed on the shopped date.
Displacement Analysis
Determining whether it’s beneficial to take rooms out of inventory that could be requested later at a higher rate (usually in a group environment). To analyze, multiply the number of guestrooms that will be denied times the average rate for that segment of business. If that is higher than the group revenue, then the group should be turned away.
Read our 'How to complete a hotel revenue displacement analysis' blog.
Dynamic Pricing
The process of actively applying revenue management by selling the same products at different prices to different customers.
Fenced Rate
A rate that involves certain requirements in order to make the reservation, such as nonrefundable and non-cancelable reservations, or advanced purchase reservations. Fenced rates are more easily segmented.
Forecast
Expected revenue results based on analysis (occupancy and average rate included). Forecasts also typically refer to predicted demand.
Franchise Fees
Annual fees collected by hotel brands from hotel owners for the use of their name and services, including sales, marketing and technology.
Gaming Worth Per Occupied Room (GamingWorthPOR)
(Total hotel guest gaming theoretical + total cash spend [including room and ancillaries]) / the number of occupied rooms.
Global Distribution Systems (GDS)
Four large reservation systems (Amadeus, Galileo, Sabre, Worldspan) originally designed for airlines and now widely used by travel agents only to book all forms of travel. GDS systems generally use older technology and are not connected through the Internet.
Gross Operating Profit Per Available Room (GOPPAR)
A metric that measures total revenue minus operational and marketing expenses per room.
Group Displacement
The process of evaluating a group's total profitability in comparison to the profitability of accepting business from other channels.
Leisure Traveler
Non-business traveler, or someone traveling for personal reasons and not work.
Length of Stay
The number of nights a guest has booked at the hotel.
Look-to-book Ratio
Used in the travel industry to show the percentage of website visitors (lookers) relative to the number who book on the website (bookers).
Lose-it Rate
A rate where the hotel would be better off leaving the room unsold than sell at this rate.
Market Share
The percentage of business your hotel is receiving as compared to other hotels in the market.
Market Penetration Index (MPI)
A metric used to determine whether the property is achieving its fair share of occupancy compared to a specific group of hotels (i.e. a competitive set). It is calculated by taking the occupancy percentage of the property and dividing it by the occupancy percentage of the competitive set (competitive set data collected through a third-party provider such as STR).
A MPI of above 1.00 indicates that the property is achieving more than its fair share, while below 1.00 suggests that the hotels in the competitive set are 'eating' into the properties' 'pie'. Note: Traditionally, revenue managers prefer to multiply the number by 100 (or convert into a percentage).
Metasearch
A type of search engine that aggregates inventory from several sources and presents it in a single space.
MICE
An acronym for meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions. This is also commonly referred to as "meetings and events."
Minimum Length of Stay (MinLOS)
An inventory control mechanism used to optimize stay patterns, primarily to ensure that a peak demand night does not get filled with one-night stays.
Net Rate
The sell rate with commission already taken out, sometimes required for OTAs.
Net Revenue Per Available Room (Net RevPAR)
Calculated by multiplying occupancy by ADR and then subtracting the overhead or costs associated with that room booking.
Occupancy
The percentage of available rooms that were sold during a specified period of time. Occupancy is calculated by dividing the number of rooms sold by rooms available. Occupancy = Rooms Sold / Rooms Available.
Occupancy Index
The measure of your property occupancy percentage compared to the occupancy percentage of your competitive set. Formula: Hotel OCC/ competitive set OCC * 100.
Online Travel Agency (OTA)
An Internet-based hotel and travel reservations system. Hotels typically provide inventory to OTAs, which sell the rooms in exchange for a commission.
Opaque
Describes a booking channel where the supplier (hotel) remains hidden until after the purchase is complete.
Open Pricing
The ability to price all room types, channels and dates independently of each other to maximize revenue without having to close any off.
Discover our Open Pricing methodology.
Overbooking
The practice of confirming reservations beyond capacity, either in expectation of cancellations or no-shows, or in error.
Pace
Also called pickup, pace is the rate at which reservations are made for a particular date.
Pay Per Click (PPC)
A marketing technique employed when a marketer establishes links or advertising copy on a web page and agrees to pay a fee each time a web user clicks on those links.
Predictive Analytics
Extracting information from data and using it to predict trends and behavior patterns.
Price Elasticity
An economic measure that shows the responsiveness or “elasticity” of the demand for a product based on a change in its price.
ProPAR
Profits per available room, an emerging metric that calculates not revenue, but net revenue. This factors in customer acquisition costs and other expenses. Net RevPAR is another term for this.
Property Management System (PMS)
Used onsite in an individual hotel to allow for guest check-in and check-out.
Rate parity
The strategy to maintain consistency of rates between sales channels, usually enforced through contractual agreements between hotel companies and third-party vendors.
Regret
A notification that the hotel has been shopped on its direct booking engine and a rate was given, but a guest chooses not to accept the reservation
Request For Proposal (RFP)
Documentation that details the requirements a customer has for a specific group booking or event, including number of guests, number of rooms, length of stay, function space needs, ancillary spend (F&B, transfers etc.), and more.
Revenue per available room (RevPAR)
A metric used to assess how well a hotel has managed their inventory and rates to optimize revenue. Calculated by multiplying occupancy by ADR.
Revenue Generating Index (RGI) or RevPAR Index (RPI)
A metric used to determine whether a property is achieving its fair share of revenue compared to a specific group of hotels (i.e. a competitive set). It is calculated by taking the RevPAR of the property and dividing it by the RevPAR of the competitive set (competitive set data collected through a third-party provider, such as STR).
An RGI of above 1 indicates the property is achieving more than its fair share, while below 1 suggests that the hotels in the competitive set are eating into the properties’ pie. Traditionally, operators prefer to multiply the number by 100 (or convert into a percentage).
Revenue Management
The art and science of predicting real-time customer demand and optimizing the price and availability of products to match that demand.
Revenue per Square foot of function space (RevPAS)
A measure of how effectively hotels (especially group and convention hotels) are at renting their function space. Formula: Total Function Room revenue/ Total square footage of function room space.
Revenue Strategy
A holistic approach that enables collaboration and innovation across all departments of the hotel or casino enterprise. By unifying teams around a common source of dynamic data and a company-wide mission focused on profitability, an organization can become more efficient, drive more direct engagement with customers and capture more revenue.
STR
A private company that provides a clearing house where hotels can enter their own operating data (ADR, Occupancy and total rooms) and STR then aggregates this information with data from other hotels in the same market and allows participating hotels to compare their KPIs.
Shoulder Date
Nights that are next to full or very compressed dates. If a Friday and Saturday are forecasted to be sold out, and Sunday is not, it would be considered a shoulder date in that example.
Stay Pattern Management
A revenue management process that seeks to make optimum use of hotel capacity by ensuring the stay patterns on the books do not result in un-sellable stay patterns remaining to be booked.
Transient
Non-group business.
Total Revenue Management
The idea of forecasting and dynamically pricing various components of a guest's on-property stay outside of just rooms, and then capturing total spend data.
Total Revenue Per Available Room (TrevPAR)
Using a more complete look at the revenue brought in by guests beyond just room rate, including things like food and beverage, spa, parking, etc., to determine the hotel's success rate per room.
Unconstrained Demand
The forecast of how many rooms you could sell if you had an unlimited number of rooms.
Web Shopping Regrets and Denials
When a hotel has been shopped online and a rate was given but the guest did not book a reservation (regret), or a rate was not given at all due to a restriction or sell out (denial).
Yield
The dynamic pricing, overbooking and allocation of perishable assets to maximize revenue.
Yield Management
Sometimes synonymous with Revenue Management, Yield Management is the process of understanding, anticipating and reacting to customer needs and behavior with the intent of maximizing revenue.