July - Month in review

July was all about sport with a handful of the top soccer teams in the world coming down under. There was Liverpool matches in Brisbane and Adelaide while Melbourne hosted Manchester City, Real Madrid and Roma.

Most of the above matches did good things for the hotel markets but the main event for the month was definitely State of Origin 3 in Brisbane. For the last year or two State of Origin has been a bit disappointment for the hotels as they over-charge and the city doesn't end up filling as people refuse to pay the ridiculous prices. Thankfully this year was better and the city did fill but the noticeable difference was most of the requests were just one night stays.

This month I also visited a couple of hotels in the city. The first was Capri by Fraser that opened a few months ago and later that week was Hotel Jen. As well as having a look around the hotels I was lucky enough to have lunch in both their restaurants.

June - Month in review

June turned out to be a relatively quiet month but the highlight and the busiest night was definitely State of Origin 3 in Melbourne on June 17. At the end of the week prior to the game, you couldn't get a room for under $500, unless you spoke to us of course. There were just a handful of rooms available in the days leading up to the game and prices were through the roof.

The only other peak date in June was the same week (as above) in Canberra. The dates for parliament this year have been busy, but nothing over the top yet. Tuesday June 16 changed all that and availability was limited well in advance. We started getting calls more than a week out which is a rarity for Canberra. At that time there was nothing under $350 and a few days later that minimum had moved up to $450. Not long after the city was full and the phone calls really came flooding in. Why was this was parliament so much busier? Unfortunately I don't know but hopefully it happens again soon.