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“Turkey Wednesday” – the day before Thanksgiving – is the Black Friday of the grocery sector. Shoppers flock to supermarkets nationwide to pick up everything from turkey to cranberry sauce. And for grocery retailers, the resulting traffic surge marks one of the most important days of the year.
So with the holiday just under our (admittedly, slightly loosened) belts, we dug into the data to see how this year’s milestone performed. Did economic uncertainty or online alternatives keep shoppers home? Or did the milestone drive results?
The data leaves little room for doubt: Turkey Wednesday delivered once again. On November 26th, 2025, visits to grocery stores surged 82.6% above the average day from November 2024 through October 2025. And across the full pre-Thanksgiving week (November 20th–26th), traffic climbed 26.8% above the weekly average.
Turkey Wednesday this year also outperformed 2024: Year over year (YoY), overall grocery visits increased 5.8% on Turkey Wednesday, while the average number of visits per individual location rose 4.8%. And looking at the entire week before Thanksgiving, overall traffic and average visits per location rose 5.1% and 4.1%, respectively.
Which grocery segments contributed the most to the pre-holiday traffic surge? Digging into the data for different grocery formats reveals a clear divide between Turkey Wednesday itself and the days leading up to the milestone, with each segment contributing at different moments.
On Turkey Wednesday, traditional supermarkets came out on top. Visits to chains like Kroger, Safeway, and H-E-B climbed 85.6% above their 12-month daily average, a larger jump than in 2024. Value and specialty chains also posted YoY gains that outpaced last year – though their spikes were smaller than those seen at traditional grocers.
But widening the lens to the entire week before Thanksgiving reveals a more nuanced picture. While traditional grocery chains dominated Turkey Wednesday itself, value grocery stores have become increasingly vital destinations during the broader pre-holiday period. Over the full week, value grocery visits rose 27.8% above their weekly baseline, edging out the 26.8% increase for traditional supermarkets.
This early-week advantage for budget chains suggests that many price-sensitive shoppers may be planning ahead, spreading trips across multiple days and hunting for better deals before the last-minute rush.
Daily visit patterns further highlight the split between early value planners and day-of shoppers. As the chart below shows, value grocery chains consistently outperformed traditional grocers from Thursday, November 20th through Tuesday, November 24th, as shoppers did the bulk of their shopping. Specialty grocers also kept close pace with traditional supermarkets during this period, occasionally pulling slightly ahead.
Then, on Turkey Wednesday, traditional grocery took the lead with a 104.1% jump over a typical Wednesday – well above the other segments. When shoppers move into last-minute mode, it’s the traditional chains’ broad assortments and familiar layouts that draw them in for those final items.
But while value grocers benefit most from the early phase of holiday shopping, visit-duration data shows that the two-phase pattern plays out across all segments. Between November 20th and 25th, average dwell times rose across grocery formats, peaking on Monday and Tuesday for traditional chains and over the weekend for value and specialty grocers.
Then, on Turkey Wednesday, dwell times eased back from those peak levels – reflecting a shift toward faster, more targeted trips to grab missing ingredients or finalize meal prep. The shift from longer, more deliberate outings to shorter, last-minute stops underscores the two-step rhythm of Thanksgiving shopping: thoughtful planning early on, followed by efficient wrap-ups as the holiday approaches.
Differences between segments notwithstanding, leading grocery chains across formats saw meaningful YoY traffic gains, both on Turkey Wednesday and during the full pre-holiday week. As shown by the chart below, major chains from Trader Joe’s to Meijer experienced YoY increases in the average number of visits to each location during the pre-Thanksgiving rush, pointing to widespread sector-wide strength during the milestone.
Grocery’s strong performance on Turkey Wednesday – the first big milestone of the holiday period – offers a welcome sign of shopper resilience in a season defined by concerns over confidence.
And as the festive season continues, grocery chains across formats can use these insights to refine their layouts, promotions, and assortments to capture even more pre-holiday traffic. Traditional grocery chains, for example, may look to strengthen their value-focused offerings to appeal to early planners in the pre-Christmas period, while value grocers might consider strategies to capture more of the last-minute traffic that intensifies as the holiday approaches.
For more data-driven grocery insights check out Placer.ai’s free industry trends tool.
Placer.ai leverages a panel of tens of millions of devices and utilizes machine learning to make estimations for visits to locations across the US. The data is trusted by thousands of industry leaders who leverage Placer.ai for insights into foot traffic, demographic breakdowns, retail sale predictions, migration trends, site selection, and more.
During the quarter ending August 16, 2025, Kroger’s same-store sales (excl. fuel) rose 3.4% year over year, slightly outperforming the prior reporting period’s 3.2% increase. Behind that steady sales growth is a surge in digital engagement: E-commerce sales – including BOPIS (buy-online-pickup-in-store) – jumped 16.0%, building on an already impressive 15.0% increase the previous quarter.
This digital momentum is showing up in store traffic as well. Over the past several months, total visits to Kroger’s banners have grown modestly, between 0.4% and 3.3% year over year (YoY). But short visits (under ten minutes) have really accelerated, suggesting rising shopper appetite for curbside and in-store pickup – an especially promising sign for the grocery leader as it doubles down on digital profitability. Last week, Kroger announced the closure of several automated facilities and a pivot toward store-based fulfillment and third-party delivery partnerships. And with the increasing use of BOPIS, that strategy appears well-aligned with how many customers are already choosing to shop.
Zooming in on Kroger’s individual brands reveals a similar trend. Short visits led the way across all major Kroger banners, from its namesake stores to Fred Meyer’s hypercenter format. At the same time, longer in-store visits also trended upward, showing that traditional in-store shopping remains resilient even as digital and pickup channels expand.
And like many other retailers, all Kroger brands saw positive YoY visit growth in October. This renewed strength in a category like grocery that doesn’t typically feature major October promotions may signal improving consumer resilience heading into the holidays.
Foot traffic patterns highlight Kroger’s growing strength in balancing digital convenience with in-store engagement. And as the company refines its fulfillment model, its ability to efficiently serve customers across channels may prove to be a key competitive edge as Q4 wears on.
For more data-driven retail insights, follow Placer.ai/anchor.
Placer.ai leverages a panel of tens of millions of devices and utilizes machine learning to make estimations for visits to locations across the US. The data is trusted by thousands of industry leaders who leverage Placer.ai for insights into foot traffic, demographic breakdowns, retail sale predictions, migration trends, site selection, and more.
The holiday season is apparel’s time to shine. Steep seasonal markdowns draw budget-conscious consumers eager to save a few bucks on refreshing their wardrobes, while a wide array of gift options entices those hunting for that perfect sweater their sister would never buy for herself.
But to make the most of this opportunity, retailers need to understand their shoppers. Who is driving holiday visit traffic to clothing stores – and what are they after?
If last year is any indication, off-price brands will likely see a steady climb in visits from early November onward, fueled by continuous markdowns and the treasure-hunt appeal of new inventory. Traditional apparel retailers, by contrast, are more likely to see sharper, event-driven spikes – especially around key milestones like Black Friday.
The two apparel categories also differ in how shoppers spend their time once they’re in-store.
Traditional retailers see visit durations rise on Black Friday, as shoppers looking to restock their closets take time to browse and try on clothes. But during key December milestones like Super Saturday and the days leading up to Christmas, dwell times actually dip below average as shoppers focus on quick gift purchases rather than personal shopping.
Off-price retailers, on the other hand, sustain longer dwell times throughout most of the season. This suggests that many off-price shoppers are combining gift buying with taking advantage of seasonal prices to purchase clothing for themselves and their families. Only on Christmas Eve do visit durations to off-price retailers fall below average, as shoppers make their final dash for stocking stuffers.
Unsurprisingly, off-price retailers draw less affluent shoppers than traditional apparel chains. But during the holiday shopping season, both segments attract broader audiences than usual. Last December, the captured markets of both types of retailers included higher shares of middle- and lower-income consumers that may not typically splurge on new clothes – though as illustrated by the chart below, the shift was more pronounced for off-price retailers.
While off-price retailers have seen stronger foot traffic trends this year, the holidays remain a critical period for both segments. And by understanding shifts in consumer behavior, retailers across apparel categories can better tailor their strategies to capture demand:
For more data-driven apparel insights check out Placer.ai’s free industry trends tool.
Placer.ai leverages a panel of tens of millions of devices and utilizes machine learning to make estimations for visits to locations across the US. The data is trusted by thousands of industry leaders who leverage Placer.ai for insights into foot traffic, demographic breakdowns, retail sale predictions, migration trends, site selection, and more.
Visits to DICK’S Sporting Goods remained below 2024 levels through most of 2025, but the year-over-year (YoY) gap has narrowed – improving from -6.0% in Q1 to -2.6% in Q3. This YoY visit gap is partly due to store closures: Over the past year, DICK’s has closed several locations, leading to a drop in its total unit count. And monthly data points to renewed momentum for Q4 – October visits climbed 2.2% YoY, marking the company’s strongest performance of the year and a promising sign for the holiday season.
DICK’s solid positioning ahead of the holidays is also supported by recent sales results. For the quarter ending August 2nd, 2025, comparable sales rose 5.0% YoY, driven primarily by a 4.1% increase in average ticket size and supported by a 0.9% uptick in transactions – with e-commerce once again outpacing overall company performance.
The retailer is also deepening its digital engagement through its Game Changer youth sports app, which last quarter reached 7.4 million unique active users. At the same time, DICK’S recent acquisition of Foot Locker opens new opportunities to drive in-person shopping growth, while its expanding House of Sport concept strengthens the brand’s experiential footprint.
As the all-important holiday season approaches, will DICK’S continue to grow its foot traffic? Or will inflation fatigue keep shoppers at home?
Follow Placer.ai's data driven retail analyses to find out what lies ahead for DICK’S.
Consumer sentiment has fallen to historic lows as financial strain and inflation fatigue take their toll. Yet some retail categories continue to see steady visit growth, and dollar stores are among the standouts.
We dove into the visit data for two major players in the space – Dollar Tree and Dollar General – to see how they are faring in 2025.
Dollar Tree and Dollar General are entering the final quarter of the year on the tails of consistent, meaningful visit growth, with visits to both chains elevated every quarter from Q1 2024 onward. These results are consistent with both chains’ reporting, with Dollar Tree’s Q2 2025 net sales up 12.3% YoY, and comp sales rising 6.5%. Dollar General delivered similarly steady growth, with Q2 2025 net sales up 5.1% while same-store sales grew 2.8%.
Monthly visits, like quarterly trends, were elevated, with a notable uptick in October. Dollar Tree’s YoY visits climbed from -0.1% in September to 2.8% in October, while Dollar General’s rose from 4.4% to 6.0% over the same period, likely driven by Halloween shopping and early seasonal momentum ahead of the holidays.
Both brands continue to focus on expanding their fleets, signalling that both Dollar Tree and Dollar General are confident that their value propositions will continue to resonate with shoppers.
Dollar Tree and Dollar General continue to grow, propelled by consumers’ ongoing prioritization of value and affordability. As the holiday season approaches, both retailers seem well-positioned to capture increased traffic and spending from cost-conscious shoppers.
For the most up-to-date retail insights, check out Placer.ai’s free tools.
Placer.ai leverages a panel of tens of millions of devices and utilizes machine learning to make estimations for visits to locations across the US. The data is trusted by thousands of industry leaders who leverage Placer.ai for insights into foot traffic, demographic breakdowns, retail sale predictions, migration trends, site selection, and more.
The world of work remains in flux as companies and employees keep redefining the new “normal”. On the one hand, hybrid work has become ubiquitous – and remote-driven concepts like “microshifting” are reshaping how we think about maximizing productivity. At the same time, growing awareness of co-location’s role in sustaining the social infrastructure that fuels innovation and success is prompting more companies to call employees back to the office. In 2025 alone, employers from Toyota to JP Morgan Chase, the Washington Post, Paramount/Skydance, and even the federal government joined the wave with five-day-a-week in-office mandates.
But how are these countervailing currents playing out on the ground? Is office foot traffic reaching a plateau or is the return to office (RTO) still gaining momentum?
In October 2025, visits to Placer.ai’s Nationwide Office Index were 30.8% below October 2019 levels. While this represents a larger year-over-six-year (Yo6Y) visit gap than in September, it still signals meaningful progress: September 2025 included one extra working day compared to 2019, whereas October had one fewer. And when controlling for the number of business days, October actually saw 1.2% more traffic than September.
Year over year (YoY), too, nationwide office visits grew 4.7% in October 2025 (see second graph below) – showing that even amid entrenched hybrid norms and ongoing pushback against in-person requirements, office visit numbers continue to trend steadily upwards.
Turning to regional RTO trends, Miami and New York continued to lead the post-pandemic recovery pack. In another sign of San Francisco’s emerging turnaround, the city once again outpaced Chicago for Yo6Y growth and recorded the fastest YoY visit growth of any analyzed city. Southern hubs Dallas and Houston also outperformed the nationwide Yo6Y benchmark of -30.8%, while Houston just slightly lagged at 34.9%.
And in another indication of on-the-ground resistance to five-day mandates, location analytics suggests that employees really are quiet-quitting Fridays – at least when it comes to in-office work. Between January and October 2025, just 12.4% of weekday visits to office buildings took place on Fridays, compared to 24.3% on Tuesdays, 23.7% on Wednesdays, and 21.8% on Thursdays.
The extent of the phenomenon varies by market – employees were most likely to make the end-of-week trek to the office in Miami and Dallas and least likely to do so in Boston and Chicago – though no analyzed city saw a share of Friday visits above 15.0%. And despite New York City’s strong overall RTO, the Big Apple trailed the national baseline in Friday attendance.
October 2025’s Office Index data shows that the RTO story is still far from settled. Hybrid habits remain deeply ingrained, yet steady progress suggests a gradual rebalancing between flexibility and presence – one that will continue to shape the workplace landscape in the months ahead.
For more data-driven office visit insights, follow Placer.ai/anchor.
Walmart, Target, and Costco are three of the most popular retailers in the country, drawing millions of shoppers through their doors each day. Each of these retail giants boasts distinct strengths and strategies that cater to their unique customer bases, allowing them to thrive in a highly competitive market.
This white paper takes a closer look at some of the factors that are helping the three chains flourish. How does Walmart’s positioning as a family-friendly retailer help it drive visits in its more competitive markets? How can Target leverage its reach to drive more loyal visits? And what does the increase in young shoppers frequenting membership warehouse clubs mean for Costco?
We dove into the location analytics to explore these questions further.
Examining monthly visitation patterns for the three retail giants shows Costco’s wholesale club model leading the way with consistent year-over-year (YoY) visit growth – ranging from 6.1% in stormy January 2024 to 13.3% in June. Family favorite Walmart followed closely behind, seeing YoY foot traffic growth during all but two months, when visits briefly trailed slightly behind 2023 levels before rebounding.
Target, meanwhile, had a slower start to the year, with visits trending below 2023 levels for most of January to April. Over this same period (the three months ending May 2024), Target reported a 3.7% decline in YoY comparable sales. But since then, things have begun to turn around for the chain, with YoY visits rising in May (2.5%), June (8.9%), and July (4.7%). This renewed visit growth into the second half of the year bodes well for the superstore – and the ongoing back-to-school season may well push visits up further as the summer winds down.
For all three chains, Q2 2024’s visit success has likely been bolstered in part by summer deals and intensifying price wars – as the retailers slash prices to woo inflation-weary consumers back to the store.
Over the past few years, consumer behaviors have been changing rapidly in response to shifting economic conditions. This next section explores some of these changes at Walmart, Target, and Costco, to better understand what may be driving these shifts.
One way that consumers have traditionally responded to inflation and other headwinds has been through the adoption of mission-driven shopping – making fewer, but longer, trips to retailers, so that every visit counts. Superstores and wholesale clubs, which offer one-stop shopping experiences, have long been prime destinations for these extended shopping trips. And even during periods when visits have lagged, these retailers have often benefited from extended dwell times – leading to bigger basket sizes.
A look at changes in average dwell times at Walmart and Target suggests that as YoY visits have picked up, dwell times have come down – perhaps reflecting a normalization of consumers’ shopping patterns. With inflation stabilizing and gas prices lower than they were in 2022 and 2023, customers may feel less pressure to consolidate shopping trips than they have in recent years.
In contrast, Costco’s comparatively long dwell times have remained stable over the past several years. The warehouse club’s bulk offerings, plentiful free samples, and inexpensive food court encourage shoppers to spend more time browsing the aisles than they would at other retailers. And even if mission-driven shopping continues to subside, Costco customers will likely keep on making extra-long shopping trips.
While inflation is cooling faster than expected, prices remain high, and new players are stepping into the retail space occupied by Walmart, Target, and Costco – especially dollar stores. Though higher-income customers increasingly rely on the three retail giants for many of their purchases, customers of more modest means are often drawn to the rock-bottom prices offered at dollar stores.
And analyzing the cross-shopping patterns of visitors to Walmart, Target, and Costco shows that growing shares of visitors to the three behemoths also visit Dollar Tree on a regular basis. In Q2 2019, the share of visitors to Walmart, Target, and Costco who frequented Dollar Tree at least three times ranged between 9.8% and 13.7%. But by Q2 2024, that share rose to 16.7%-21.6%.
Dollar Tree is leaning into this increased interest among superstore shoppers. Over the past year, Dollar Tree added some 350 Dollar Tree locations, even as it shuttered nearly 400 Family Dollar stores. And the chain recently acquired the leases of some 170 99 Cents Only Stores – offering Dollar Tree access to a customer base accustomed to buying everything from groceries to household goods. As Dollar Tree continues to grow its footprint and expand its food offerings, the chain will be better positioned than ever to provide a real challenge to Walmart, Target, and Costco.
Still, the three retail giants each have unique offerings that distinguish them from dollar stores. This next section examines what sets Walmart, Target, and Costco apart – and how they can continue to strengthen their competitive edge.
With competition on the rise, Walmart, Target, and Costco must display agility in navigating an ever-evolving market landscape. This section dives into the data for each chain’s more successful metro areas to see what factors are helping them outperform nationwide averages – and what metrics the retailers can harness to try to replicate these results nationwide.
Target recently expanded its Target Circle Rewards program, rolling out three new tiers for its 100 million members. And this focus on loyalty has proven successful for the chain. Demographic and visitation data reveal a strong correlation between the median household incomes (HHIs) of Target locations’ captured markets across CBSAs (core-based statistical areas), and their share of loyal visitors in Q2 2024: CBSAs where Target locations’ captured markets had higher median HHIs also tended to draw more repeat monthly visitors.
Target’s captured markets in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, LA CBSA, for example, featured a median HHI of $89.8K in Q2 2024 – and 48.0% of the chain’s LA visitors frequented a Target at least twice a month during the quarter. Target stores in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI CBSA, where the chain’s captured markets had a median HHI of $88.7K in Q2 2024, also had a loyalty rate of 48.0%.
Target generally attracts a more affluent audience than Walmart. And even as the superstore slashes prices to attract more price-conscious consumers, the retailer is also taking steps likely to enhance its popularity among higher-income households. In April 2024, Target debuted a paid membership tier within its loyalty program offering perks like same-day delivery for a fee. Maintaining and expanding these premium offerings will be key for Target as it seeks to attract more affluent customers and replicate its high-performing results in CBSAs nationwide.
The persistent inflation of the past few years, while challenging for some retailers, has also created new opportunities – particularly for wholesalers. Membership warehouse clubs, including Costco, are gaining popularity among younger shoppers, a cohort often looking for new ways to stretch their more limited budgets. An October 2023 survey revealed that nearly 15% of respondents aged 18 to 24 and 17% of those aged 25 to 30 shop at Costco.
A closer look at some of Costco’s best-performing CBSAs for YoY visit-per-location growth highlights the significance of these younger shoppers: In H1 2024, the company’s YoY visit-per-location growth was strongest in areas with higher-than-average shares of young urban singles.
For example, the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA CBSA experienced visit-per-location growth of 10.4% YoY in H1 2024, while the nationwide average stood at 7.9%. And the CBSA’s share of Young Urban Singles, defined by the Spatial.ai: PersonaLive dataset as “singles starting their careers in trade and service jobs,” was 12.1%, well above Costco’s nationwide average of 7.3%.
Walmart is a one-stop shop for everything from affordable groceries to clothing to home furnishings, making it especially popular among families. The retailer actively courts this segment with baby offerings designed to meet the needs of both kids and parents, virtual offerings in the metaverse, and collectible toys.
And visitation data reveals a connection between the extent of different Walmart locations’ YoY visit growth and the share of households with children in their captured markets.
In H1 2024, nationwide visits to Walmart increased by 4.1% YoY, while the share of households with children in the chain’s overall captured market hovered just under the nationwide baseline. But in some CBSAs where Walmart outpaced this nationwide growth, the retail giant also proved especially adept at attracting parental households – outpacing relevant statewide baselines.
In Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA, for example, Walmart experienced 5.0% YoY visit growth in H1 2024 – while the share of households with children in the chain’s local captured market stood 7% above the Massachusetts state average. And in Grand Rapids-Kentwood, MI, where Walmart’s share of parental households outpaced the Minnesota state average by an even wider 15% margin, the retailer saw impressive 7.3% YoY visit growth. This pattern repeated itself in other metro areas, suggesting that there may be a correlation between local Walmart locations’ visit growth and their relative ability to draw households with children.
Walmart can continue solidifying its market position by leaning into its family-oriented offerings and expanding its footprint in regions with growing populations of young families.
Walmart, Target, and Costco all experienced YoY visit growth in the final months of H1 2024, with Costco leading the way. And though the three chains still face considerable challenges, each one brings unique strengths to the table. By continuously innovating and responding to changing market conditions, Walmart, Target, and Costco can not only overcome obstacles but also leverage them to reinforce their market positions and drive continued growth.
The first Lollapalooza – a four-day music festival – took place in 1991. Chicago’s Grant Park became the event’s permanent home (at least in the United States) in 2005, drawing thousands of revelers and music fans to the park each year.
This year, the festival once again demonstrated its powerful impact on the city. On August 1st, 2024, visits to Grant Park surged by 1,313.2% relative to the YTD daily average, as crowds converged on the park to see Chappell Roan’s much-anticipated performance. And during the first three days of the event, the event drew significantly more foot traffic than in 2023 – with visits up 18.9% to 35.9% compared to the first three days of last year’s festival (August 3rd to 5th, 2023).
Lollapalooza led to a dramatic spike in visits to Grant Park – and it also attracted a different type of visitor compared to the rest of the year.
Analyzing Grant Park’s captured market with Spatial.ai’s PersonaLive dataset reveals that Lollapalooza attendees are more likely to belong to the “Young Professionals” and “Ultra Wealthy Families” segment groups than the typical Grant Park visitor.
By contrast, the “Near-Urban Diverse Families” segment group, comprising middle-class diverse families living in or near cities, made up only 6.5% of visitors during the festival, compared to 12.0% during the rest of the year.
Additionally, visitors during Lollapalooza came from areas with higher HHIs than both the nationwide baseline of $76.1K and the average for park visitors throughout the year. Understanding the demographic profile of visitors to the park during Lollapalooza can help planners and city officials tailor future events to these segment groups – or look for ways to make the festival accessible to a wider range of music lovers.
Lollapalooza’s impact on Chicago extended beyond the boundaries of Grant Park, with nearby hotels seeing remarkable surges in foot traffic. The Congress Plaza Hotel on South Michigan Avenue witnessed a staggering 249.1% rise in visits during the week of July 29, 2024, compared to the YTD visit average. And Travelodge on East Harrison Street saw an impressive 181.8% increase. These spikes reflect the festival’s draw not just for locals but for out-of-town visitors who fill hotels across the city.
The North Michigan Avenue retail corridor also enjoyed a significant increase in foot traffic during the festival, with visits on Thursday, August 1st 56.0% higher than the YTD Thursday visit average. On Friday, August 2nd, visits to the corridor were 55.7% higher than the Friday visit average. These numbers highlight Lollapalooza’s role in driving economic activity across Chicago, as festival-goers venture beyond the park to explore the city’s vibrant retail and hospitality offerings.
City parks often serve as community hubs, and Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens, NY, has been a major gathering point for New Yorkers. The park hosted one of New York’s most beloved summer concerts – Governors Ball – which moved from Governors Island to Flushing Meadows in 2023.
During the festival (June 9th -11th, 2024), musicians like Post Malone and The Killers drew massive crowds to the park, with visits soaring to the highest levels seen all year. On June 9th, the opening day of the festival, foot traffic in the park was up 214.8% compared to the YTD daily average, and at its height, on June 8th, the festival drew 392.7% more visits than the YTD average.
The park also hosted other big events this summer – a July 21st set by DMC helped boost visits to 185.1% above the YTD average. And the Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival on August 3rd and 4th led to major visit boosts of 221.4% and 51.6%, respectively.
These events not only draw large crowds, but also highlight the park’s role as a space where cultural and civic life can find expression, flourish, and contribute to the health of local communities.
Analyzing changes in Flushing Meadows Corona Park’s trade area size offers insight into how far people are willing to travel for these events. During Governors Ball, for example, the park’s trade area ballooned to 254.5 square miles, showing the festival's wide appeal. On July 20th, by contrast, when the park hosted several local bands and DJs, the trade area was a much more modest 57.0 square miles.
Summer events drive community engagement, economic activity, and civic pride. Cities that invest in their parks and event hubs, fostering lively and inclusive spaces, can create lasting value for both residents and visitors, enriching the cultural and social life of urban areas.
For more data-driven civic stories, visit Placer.ai.
The pandemic and economic headwinds that marked the past few years presented the multi-billion dollar hotel industry with significant challenges. But five years later, the industry is rallying – and some hotel segments are showing significant growth.
This white paper delves into location analytics across six major hotel categories – Luxury Hotels, Upper Upscale Hotels, Upscale Hotels, Upper Midscale Hotels, Midscale Hotels, and Economy Hotels – to explore the current state of the American hospitality market. The report examines changes in guest behavior, personas, and characteristics and looks at factors driving current visitation trends.
Overall, visits to hotels were 4.3% lower in Q2 2024 than in Q2 2019 (pre-pandemic). But this metric only tells part of the story. A deeper dive into the data shows that each hotel tier has been on a more nuanced recovery trajectory.
Economy chains – those offering the most basic accommodations at the lowest prices – saw visits down 24.6% in Q2 2024 compared to pre-pandemic – likely due in part to hotel closures that have plagued the tier in recent years. Though these chains were initially less impacted by the pandemic, they were dealt a significant blow by inflation – and have seen visits decline over the past three years. As hotels that cater to the most price-sensitive guests, these chains are particularly vulnerable to rising costs, and the first to suffer when consumer confidence takes a hit.
Luxury Hotels, on the other hand, have seen accelerated visit growth over the past year – and have succeeded in closing their pre-pandemic visit gap. Upscale chains, too, saw Q2 2024 visits on par with Q2 2019 levels. As tiers that serve wealthier guests with more disposable income, Luxury and Upscale Hotels are continuing to thrive in the face of headwinds.
But it is the Upper Midscale level – a tier that includes brands like Trademark Collection by Wyndham, Fairfield by Marriott, Holiday Inn Express by IHG Hotels & Resorts, and Hampton by Hilton – that has experienced the most robust visit growth compared to pre-pandemic. In Q2 2024, Upper Midscale Hotels drew 3.5% more visits than in Q2 2019. And during last year’s peak season (Q3 2023), Upper Midscale hotels saw the biggest visit boost of any analyzed tier.
As mid-range hotels that still offer a broad range of amenities, Upper Midscale chains strike a balance between indulgence and affordability. And perhaps unsurprisingly, hotel operators have been investing in this tier: In Q4 2023, Upper Midscale Hotels had the highest project count of any tier in the U.S. hotel construction and renovation pipeline.
The shift in favor of Upper Midscale Hotels and away from Economy chains is also evident when analyzing changes in relative visit share among the six hotel categories.
Upper Midscale hotels have always been major players: In H1 2019 they drew 28.7% of overall hotel visits – the most of any tier. But by H1 2024, their share of visits increased to 31.2%. Upscale Hotels – the second-largest tier – also saw their visit share increase, from 24.8% to 26.1%.
Meanwhile, Economy, Midscale, and Upper Upscale Hotels saw drops in visit share – with Economy chains, unsurprisingly, seeing the biggest decline. Luxury Hotels, for their parts, held firmly onto their piece of the pie, drawing 2.8% of visits in H1 2024.
Who are the visitors fueling the Upper Midscale visit revival? This next section explores shifts in visitor demographics to four Upper Midscale chains that are outperforming pre-pandemic visit levels: Trademark Collection by Wyndham, Holiday Inn Express by IHG Hotels & Resorts, Fairfield by Marriott, and Hampton by Hilton.
Analyzing the captured markets* of the four chains with demographics from STI: Popstats (2023) shows variance in the relative affluence of their visitor bases.
Fairfield by Marriott drew visitors from areas with a median household income (HHI) of $84.0K in H1 2024, well above the nationwide average of $76.1K. Hampton by Hilton and Trademark Collection by Wyndham, for their parts, drew guests from areas with respective HHIs of $79.6K and $78.5K – just above the nationwide average. Meanwhile, Holiday Inn Express by IHG Hotels & Resorts drew visitors from areas below the nationwide average.
But all four brands saw increases in the median HHIs of their captured markets over the past five years. This provides a further indication that it is wealthier consumers – those who have had to cut back less in the face of inflation – who are driving hotel recovery in 2024.
(*A chain’s captured market is obtained by weighting each Census Block Group (CBG) in its trade area according to the CBG’s share of visits to the chain – and so reflects the population that actually visits the chain in practice.)
Much of the Upper Midscale visit growth is being driven by chain expansion. But in some areas of the country, the average number of visits to individual hotel locations is also on the rise – highlighting especially robust growth potential.
Analyzing visits to existing Upper Midscale chains in four metropolitan areas with booming tourism industries – Salt Lake City, UT, Palm Bay, FL, San Diego, CA, and Richmond, VA – shows that these markets feature robust untapped demand.
Utah, for example, has emerged as a tourist hotspot in recent years – with millions of visitors flocking each year to local destinations like Salt Lake City to see the sights and take in the great outdoors. And Upper Midscale hotels in the region are reaping the benefits. In H1 2024, the overall number of visits to Upper Midscale chains in Salt Lake City was 69.4% higher than in H1 2019. Though some of this increase can be attributed to local chain expansion, the average number of visits to each individual Upper Midscale location in the area also rose by 12.5% over the same period.
Palm Bay, FL (the Space Coast) – another tourist favorite – is experiencing a similar trend. Between H1 2019 and H1 2024, overall visits to local Upper Midscale hotel chains grew by 36.4% – while the average number of visits per location increased a substantial 16.9%. Given this strong demand, it may come as no surprise that the area is undergoing a hotel construction boom. Upper Midscale hotels in other areas with flourishing tourism sectors, like San Diego, CA and Richmond, VA, are seeing similar trends, with increases in both overall visits and and in the average number of visits per location.
Though Economy chains have underperformed versus other categories in recent years, the tier does feature some bright spots. Some extended-stay brands in the Economy tier – hotels with perks and amenities that cater to the needs of longer-stay travelers – are succeeding despite category headwinds.
Choice Hotels’ portfolio, for example, includes WoodSpring Suites, an Economy chain offering affordable extended-stay accommodations in 35 states. In H1 2024, the chain drew 7.7% more visits than in the first half of 2019 – even as the wider Economy sector continued to languish. InTown Suites, another Economy extended stay chain, saw visits increase by 8.9% over the same period.
And location intelligence shows that the success of these two chains is likely being driven, in part, by their growing appeal to young, well-educated professionals. In H1 2019, households belonging to Spatial.ai: PersonaLive’s “Young Professionals” segment made up 9.6% of WoodSpring Suites’ captured market. But by H1 2024, the share of this group jumped dramatically to 13.3%. At the same time, InTown Suites saw its share of Young Professionals increase from 12.0% to 13.4%.
Whether due to an affinity for prolonged “workcations” (so-called “bleisure” excursions) or an embrace of super-commuting, younger guests have emerged as key drivers of growth for the extended stay segment. And by offering low–cost accommodations that meet the needs of these travelers, Economy chains can continue to grow their share of the pie.
The hospitality industry recovery continues – led by Upper Midscale Hotels, which offer elevated experiences that don’t break the bank. But today’s market has room for other tiers as well. By keeping abreast of local visitation patterns and changing consumer profiles, hotels across chain scales can personalize the visitor experience and drive customer satisfaction.
