On September 18, CVENT hosted an insightful webinar on Event Data and Hospitality Trends, packed with juicy updates that every event planner needs to know. Whether you’re looking to stay ahead of travel trends, sharpen your budgeting, or optimize event logistics, here’s a breakdown of the top highlights from the webinar.
Hospitality Insights: A Snapshot from CoStar Group’s Market Data
It’s no surprise that group demand has improved in 2024, but here’s where things get interesting: most of the top 25 event markets are still trailing behind their 2019 numbers. The exceptions? Las Vegas, Tampa, Orlando, Dallas, and Nashville, which have all sold more group rooms than they did in both 2023 and 2019! (We can thank Super Bowl LVIII for giving Vegas that extra boost.)
When it comes to where travel coordinators are spending their budgets, the trends are shifting. In 2024, more funds are being directed towards team meetings, training, and learning & development, while spending on sales meetings and client-relationship building has taken a noticeable dip. However, over half of budget owners report their teams are traveling more frequently, driven by conferences and client demand.
CVENT’s Hospitality Event Cloud Platform Insights: Data Breakdown for 2024
The CVENT platform insights reveal promising growth in 2024. Here are the key trends:
- RFP Volume and Room Night Growth: Comparing Q2 2023 to Q2 2024, RFP volume is up 12%, and room nights have seen a 21% growth. Meanwhile, the proposed rate growth? Only a modest 0.5%.
- Event Growth: While there’s been a 7% increase in events from Q2 2023 to Q2 2024, registrations have dipped slightly, down 1%.
- Small Meetings Dominate: In Q2 2024, 36% of RFPs were for small meetings with around 30 attendees.
- Late Bookings Trend: A whopping 67% of bookings are happening in the same year they’re held, signaling that pre-booking far in advance is losing favor.
- Seasonal RFP Growth: Spring leads with a 17% RFP growth rate, followed by winter at 15%, summer at 11%, and fall at 10%.
- Room Rate Hikes: The average price increase between weekday, weekend, and extended stays is around $61 per day.
International Events Are Back!
If you’re planning global events, good news! International meetings have made a strong comeback. More than 115 countries have received RFPs from U.S. planners, and over 1,300 U.S. planners have sourced venues internationally.
Planning Timelines & Booking Behavior
Timing is everything, and CVENT data shows us exactly how planners are approaching their event timelines:
- Average Event Lifecycle: The typical lifecycle for in-person and hybrid events from creation to the event date is around 167 days.
- Single-Day Event Trends: Thursday takes the crown for virtual and hybrid events, while Wednesday is the top choice for in-person events.
- Multi-Day Event Start Days: For 3-day events, Tuesday is the most popular start day across all formats (virtual, in-person, hybrid). Meanwhile, Monday is preferred for events longer than 3 days.
- Event Registration Patterns: Most registrations for in-person and hybrid events happen 4+ weeks in advance, while virtual events see the bulk of registrations 2-4 weeks before the event.
5 Key Takeaways for 2024 Event Planners
- Group Travel’s Comeback: While many top markets are still catching up to 2019 levels, cities like Las Vegas, Tampa, and Nashville are thriving with strong group room demand. Keep an eye on these cities for high-impact event locations.
- Shifting Budget Priorities: Expect to see more budget directed toward team meetings, training, and development, while sales-focused travel and client visits are taking a backseat. Plan your event offerings to align with these evolving priorities.
- Shorter Booking Windows: With 67% of event bookings happening within the same year, the trend of late bookings is here to stay. Flexibility in planning and a quick response to last-minute opportunities will be key.
- Room Rate Spikes: The average room rate has increased by $61 per day, so be prepared for higher accommodation costs when budgeting for events in 2024.
- Seasonal Surge: Expect the biggest RFP growth during the spring and winter seasons, with a notable 17% increase in spring 2024. Plan ahead to take advantage of these peak booking periods.
2024 has seemed to shape up to be a dynamic year for event planners, and staying on top of these data-driven trends will give you a competitive edge. Keep these insights in your back pocket as you plan your 2025 events!
To learn how Heroic can help you with your upcoming events, contact us!
For ideas on how to take your next event from drab to fab, check out What’s New in Event Tech.
Source: Tourism Economics STR
Source: CVENT’s Event Management Data
Emotion is all about the senses.
Storytelling. It’s not just for bedtime anymore. Now it’s all grown up and ready to wow guests at your next event. Telling stories can be a compelling way to massively boost your event’s impact and make it more memorable because it has multi-sensory appeal. Storytelling is the all-inclusive technique to deliver that extra wow factor! 
Every event planner’s goal is to wow their audience. While you can always do more to impress them, you can also do less. Nothing, to be exact!
Staying top-of-mind after an event is important for businesses. And what’s the best way to do that? Provide free swag to event attendees. After all, who doesn’t love free stuff? But beware, there’s stuff, and then there are really great swag ideas. A bag full of “who cares?” won’t do anything to identify your business as innovative or memorialize your brand.
It’s every event planners goal to make things go as smoothly as possible at your event. So it’s easy to follow a tried-and-true formula of branded colors, logos, and speeches from the CEO — no surprises there! But, think about it from your audience’s point of view. No one wants to attend the same event over and over again. So, if you’re focusing on efficiency instead of your attendees, it’s time for a change!
Sustainable living keeps getting more and more popular with many people, whether that’s opting for reusable shopping bags, organic cotton clothes, LED light bulbs, or composting food scraps. So, it’s no surprise that making events eco-friendly is becoming more and more popular, too. Doing your part to conserve our natural resources can boost your event’s appeal and give attendees more ways to engage while they’re there.
Today, you can live stream just about anything — from a fundraiser, birthday party, or vacation to a cooking lesson, wedding proposal, or corporate event. It’s an excellent way for those who cannot attend in person to enjoy the experience in real-time. For companies hosting corporate events and concerts, it’s a great marketing tool, as well. That is if you do it right. And do it well.
If you’re putting on a significant event such as a national or international conference or a multi-day festival, it’s your outstanding array of “content” that will attract attendees. But, let’s face it. Today’s attendees expect a comprehensively exceptional experience — one personalized for them. And the hottest event trends reflect that.