Hotel bookings see slow uptick days before FIFA World Cup

TEXAS — We are less than two weeks away from the first FIFA World Cup game in Texas, and millions will travel to the Lone Star State to watch their nation compete.

But according to a new report by the American Hotel and Lodging Association (AHLA), hotel bookings are lower than expected despite millions of tickets sold.

In the AHLA survey, the expected demand has not translated into strong hotel bookings.

In the report, 70% of hotel participants in Dallas and Houston say booking levels for June and July were below their expectations.

Visit Dallas, a business and leisure marketing organization, says it is seeing 50% booked occupancy at hotels for the month of June and more like 25% for July.

Dallas will host matches for teams from Argentina, England, Croatia, the Netherlands, Austria, Jordan, Japan, the Czech Republic and Sweden.

“We are seeing significant pace increases in airline bookings from every country we are hosting. Conveniently for those travelers, we offer direct flights to a majority of those countries,” said the Visit Dallas marketing team.

Brent DeRaad, the CEO of the Arlington Convention & Visitors Bureau, said there has been an uptick in hotel bookings in Arlington — where the games will be held at AT&T Stadium, which will be known as Dallas Stadium for the duration of the World Cup.

“What we’re seeing is, especially the earlier matches, are filling up very quickly in terms of our hotels; we’re seeing higher occupancies there,” said DeRaad.

He also said hotel bookings usually increase right before an event.

DeRaad also says once the knockout matches come to an end, hotel bookings should increase toward the end of June.

“Very optimistic that we’ll be able to, to have sold out hotels here in Arlington. Certainly, the FIFA match nights and the nights before matches,” he said.

But what could be causing a lag in hotel bookings? According to AHLA, visa delays, geopolitical tensions and an increase in travel costs for international travelers are some of the likely factors.

June 14 is the first match between the Netherlands and Japan at Dallas Stadium.