Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | May 18, 2026 | Worcester Business Journal 13 Our business doesn't use Worcester hotels Two hotels plan to begin construction this year in Worcester, including a pro- posed WoodSpring Suites location, where the would-be developer bought the property for $1.4 million at the end of April. Business and tourism officials have pushed Worcester to add more hotel rooms, in order to attract large-scale events. When polled online, the majority of WBJ readers said their businesses don't use any hotel rooms in the region. How many Greater Worcester hotel room nights does your business use each year? We don't use any hotel room nights. 53% 1-50 29% More than 250 8% 100-250 5% 51-100 5% Mark Donahue 508.459.8029 Todd Brodeur 508.459.8038 Local Insight. Real Results. FletcherTilton.com WORCESTER | BOSTON | PROVIDENCE | CAPE COD | FRAMINGHAM Commercial real estate success depends on timing, insight, and execution. We bring all three—backed by deep local knowledge and decades of experience. factors with a great product will make it one of the leaders in the market." e two hotels will add to Worces- ter's 1,019 hotel rooms across eight sites, compared to Providence's 3,031 rooms and Springfield's 1,442, according to real estate data firm CoStar. Worcester's relatively low number of hotel rooms is oen cited as a roadblock to hosting major col- lege sporting tournaments and other high-profile events. But the framing of the need for more hotels in Worcester around a handful of large-scale events ignores the realities of the hotel business, said Mary Simone, general manager of the AC Hotel by Marriott Worcester. "It's become a narrative, and I just keep on going, 'Okay, that's what we're going to go with?" she said. Looking at the state of the market, Simone is skeptical of Worcester's need for more hotel rooms. e AC's status as one of Worcester's newest hotels in a prime Downtown location has allowed it to do well, but busi- ness-driven travel has been down as of late, she said. Lagging weekday traffic Occupancy rates in the Worcester hospitality submarket, an area con- sisting of roughly the southern half of Worcester County, recovered above pre-COVID levels in 2024, reaching a 10-year high in May 2024 of 67.5%. Rates declined in 2025 into this year, hitting 60% in April, right around where the rate was in the months before the pandemic, according to CoStar. is compares to a national occu- pancy rate of 62.3%, which fell 0.5 percentage points since 2025 but has been stable over the past three years, boosted by growth in supply to meet increased demand, according to data from real estate brokerage Cushman & Wakefield. As Worcester hotel occupancy rates have climbed since the pandemic, so has revenue. e average daily rate in the city has grown 27% from $113.51 in February 2020 to $144.49 in Febru- ary 2026, according to CoStar. "Worcester hotels would like to host more visitors coming into the region, especially around major events, meetings, and sports activity," Monique Messier-Joseph, president of tourism marketing agency Discover Central Massachusetts, wrote in an email to WBJ. "Discover Central MA supports that effort in a number of ways, including targeted marketing campaigns, event and sports promo- tion, partnerships with planners and venues, and most recently, a robust Expedia campaign designed to en- courage visitors to stay in Worcester and the region." e effort to bring more visitors to the city oen centers around the 14,500-seat arena DCU Center. Yet, those types of events only sell out ho- tel rooms about seven times per year, Simone said. "You can't build a hotel because of the DCU Center," she said. Simone, who is board chair of Dis- cover Central Massachusetts, said she hopes to see the region's tourism grow and welcomes competition in the local market, even though demand is lower. Simone said weekend traffic is still strong, with Worcester's central location bringing in travelers and the city's Downtown area attracting events like weddings and other family gatherings. She has seen a significant drop off in guests relating to business development projects in the region, a key aspect of filling rooms during weekdays. Projects driving major demand to hotels, such as Amazon's construction of a $300-million robotics fulfillment center in Charlton, have been tough to come by as of late, she said. Even something as simple as JetBlue changing the flight patterns of its Worcester routes can have a big impact on flight crews looking for rooms, Simone said. "We lost a lot of money once they changed, because I had to put out another sales person just to go and replace that business," she said. Even NCAA events aren't guaran- teed income, as a team's early exit from the competition can lead to empty rooms that hotels then have to scram- ble to fill, Simone said. $25M new hotel construction Local colleges offer a steady source for guests, said Simone and Karam. At Homewood Suites, business travel has been a bit so as of late too, Karam said, but the property has met expectations since opening in 2017. Traveling nurses were attracted to the extended-stay hotel during the pandemic, helping it weather that time period. First Bristol's new Hampton Inn hotel in Washington Square will cost around $25 million to build and be complete about 12 to 18 months aer construction begins, he said. "e location is superb, right at the intersection of Shrewsbury Street, with all the restaurants and nightlife, and then downtown and being connected to the DCU Center," Karam said. "It's got easy visibility from the highway and good access. I think all those factors with a great product will make it one of the leaders in the market." F O C U S W

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