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The dining segment has faced no shortage of challenges in recent years. Rising food and labor costs, inflation, and shifting consumer habits have put pressure on many chains – but some are thriving.
We take a look at three dining chains – local favorites that have been expanding in recent years – to see what lies behind their surprising success.
Visits to the overall fast-casual segment remained flat year over year (YoY) in Q1 2025, highlighting the challenging state of the dining category. But three expanding local restaurant chains – Pura Vida Miami, Mendocino Farms, and P. Terry’s Burger Stand – all saw their foot traffic grow significantly in the same period.
Florida-based Pura Vida Miami, a cafe that specializes in health and wellness, saw the biggest jump in foot traffic, with visits growing by 58.5% in Q1 2025 compared to Q1 2024. The eatery, which opened its first location in 2012, and now boasts 35 locations across South Florida and New York has no plans to slow its rapid expansion. And fittingly, the average number of visits to each location of the chain also increased by 11.9% YoY – highlighting that its new venues are meeting strong demand.
California-based fast-casual restaurant Mendocino Farms also places a strong emphasis on healthy dining. Founded in 2005, the chain has grown to 75 locations – most of them in California – and continues to thrive, with visits up by 23.0% in Q1 2025 and visits per location rising by 12.9%. Austin, Texas favorite P. Terry’s Burger Stand, which opened in 2005, is also thriving. The chain grew its presence over the past year, adding new locations in Houston – and like the other analyzed brands, saw increases in both overall visits and average visits per location.
Location analytics show that each of the chains is finding success in its own way. Diving into hourly visitation patterns for Pura Vida Miami, for example, reveals a subtle but notable shift in its peak visit times, suggesting that as the chain expands, it is successfully positioning itself as a breakfast and lunchtime destination. Between Q1 2025 and Q1 2024, the share of visitors arriving between 7:00 and 11:00 AM, and 12:00 - 4:00 PM increased slightly, while the proportion of evening visitors declined.
To capitalize on this trend, Pura Vida could consider further developing its morning menu or, conversely, exploring opportunities to enhance its dinner menu to attract a cohort that seeks health-centric dinner items.
Mendocino Farms, for its part, appears to be deriving some of its success from the affluence of its customer base. The chain, which boasts over 60 of its 75 locations in California, has also established a presence in Washington, Texas, and Colorado. Mendocino Farms will be opening around 15 new locations throughout 2025, and will begin its eastward march, opening a location in Chicago in the coming months.
And a look at the chains’ two largest markets, California and Texas, shows that visitors to the Mendocino Farms in Q1 2025 were more likely to come from high-income trade areas, likely insulating them from the overall challenges facing the wider dining segment. For example, the median HHI of visitors to Mendocino Farms in California was $123.8K, compared to the California average of $96.7K. And in Texas, its second-largest market, visitors originated from trade areas with a median HHI of $105.8K – significantly higher than both the Texas ($76.5K) and nationwide ($78.9K) medians.
P. Terry’s Burger Stand is a Texas cult favorite. The chain, which has grown from a family-owned burger stand in 2005 to 34 locations in the Austin area is thriving, and recently began expanding into other cities in Texas.
Over the years, the chain has become something of a weekend destination, with 30.4% of its visitors coming on the weekends in Q1 2025 – up from 28.1% in Q1 2024. This suggests that, as the chain grows, more customers are incorporating P. Terry's into their weekend routines, likely drawn by its blend of quality and accessible price point. This increasing weekend popularity, coupled with its strategic expansion into new markets like Houston, bodes well for P. Terry's continued growth across Texas.
The three dining chains are proving that, even in challenging times, there’s plenty of space for local favorites to flourish.
Will these chains continue to thrive in the second half of 2025?
Visit Placer.ai/anchor to stay up-to-date with the latest data driving dining stores.
Imagine being able to literally pop downstairs for your favorite coffee shop, boutique, or to pick up a novel from your local bookstore. At the Arcade mixed-use shopping center in Providence, this is not a pipe dream, but a reality. Originally built in 1828, this historic building was conceived as a social and commercial hub filled with wares from merchants and artisans where customers could shop even in inclement weather. Nearly 200 years later, the purpose remains the same. However, as suburban shopping centers proliferated in the last few decades, Arcade struggled with its foot traffic.
In 2008, it closed for renovations and reopened in 2013, transformed into a mixed-use commercial and residential micro-loft space. The top two floors consist of 48 micro-lofts with 225-300 square feet of living space. None have stoves or ovens, perfect for those Carrie Bradshaw type occupants who would otherwise store sweaters in their ovens. Those coming from densely packed urban areas like New York or Tokyo would appreciate the minimalism and efficiency of these lofts. Upon opening, there was a waiting list of 4,000, making obtaining a spot even more competitive than getting into an elite university.
The Arcade Providence still operates retail and dining spaces on the ground floor, including local favorites like a Lovecraft-themed bookstore, or Lobanton, an Asian-fusion sandwich shop. The Greek Revival-themed mall also hosts New Harvest Coffee & Spirits and restaurants like Rogue Island, all of which attract a steady stream of visitors.
How has the shift to mixed-use impacted the psychographic composition of the venue's visitor base? We compared the segments visiting Arcade Providence in 2018 vs 2024 and found some interesting shifts that have occurred in the past six years. Visitors in 2018 tended to come from the Young Professional (26%) or Educated Urbanites (18%) segments (per the Spatial.ai PersonaLive classifications). However, six years later, the share of those segments in the Arcade's visitor base have declined, while the percentages of visitors from the Upper Suburban Diverse Families (from 10% to 13%) and Ultra Wealthy Families (from 5% to 11%) segments have increased.
The change in visitor demographics is likely driven – at least in part – by the increase in True Trade Area since the Arcade's shift to mixed-use. The 2018 trade area (in blue) covered only 29 sq miles, whereas the 2024 trade area (in green) has expanded to 65 miles.
The Arcade is located in downtown Providence, so this increase in trade area size suggests that the venue is now attracting visitors from more suburban areas beyond the city center, which typically include more family-oriented and wealthier zones.
This nearly 200-year old shopping center exhibits our ingrained human tendency to congregate, conduct commerce, and socialize. It also shows the constant evolution of how we live, work, and play.
For more data-driven CRE insights, visit placer.ai/anchor.
Following a strong April when nationwide office visits rose 4.8% year-over-year, visits fell slightly in May 2025 as traffic fell 1.0% compared to May 2024. On a year-over-six-year basis (Yo6Y, or compared to 2019), visits were down 37.2% – a steep drop from April's 30.1% Yo6Y visit gap.
The weaker May numbers may be partially driven by a calendar shift, as May 2025 had an extra Saturday, and therefore one less workday, than either May 2024 or May 2019. Americans may have also chosen to take more PTO around Memorial Day this year – according to the TSA, airports were busier on the Friday before Memorial Day 2025 than they were on Friday, May 24th 2024.
But the muted May office data also highlights the persistent popularity of hybrid and remote work. According to Gallup, over half of U.S. employees work hybrid while over a quarter are fully remote – and the recent May data suggests that these work arrangements are proving difficult to change.
Diving into the market-level data reveals that New York City, NY and Miami, FL continue to lead the pack, with office visits down 18.4% and 19.6%, respectively, compared to 2019. But both cities also saw slight declines compared to May 2024's office numbers – highlighting once again the persistence of the new work arrangements and the overall slowing of the office recovery.
Southern hubs – specifically Atlanta, GA, Dallas, TX, and Houston, TX – followed New York and Miami, with visits down 32.1%, 35.5%, and 36.2% compared to May 2019. Dallas and Houston also saw their office visits increase compared to 2024, with Houston specifically seeing an 8.3% increase in YoY office visits, perhaps aided by corporate relocations to the two cities. Georgia and Texas also saw their populations increase in recent years, which may be contributing to these cities' office performance.
Meanwhile, the Yo6Y office visit gap in Washington, D.C., Boston, MA, Los Angeles, CA, Chicago, IL, Denver, CO, and San Francisco, CA ranged from 40.1% to 50.6%, with all the cities except for Boston also experiencing YoY declines.
The May 2025 Placer.ai Office Index highlights a persistent plateau in office recovery. While some regional bright spots exist, the return to pre-pandemic office traffic remains elusive, largely due to the enduring popularity of hybrid and remote work models.
For more data-driven commercial real estate insights, visit placer.ai/anchor.
Darden Restaurants, which counts Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse among its portfolio of leading full-service restaurant (FSR) chains, has been on a solid growth trajectory: In March 2025, the company reported a 6.2% year-over-year (YoY) quarterly sales increase, fueled by expansion and a 0.7% bump in same-restaurant sales.
With Darden set to report again in June 2025, we dove into the data to see how the full-service restaurant (FSR) leader has performed so far this year.
In Q1 2025, overall visits to Darden Restaurants’ brand portfolio outpaced average visits per location, reflecting the company’s expansion in 2024, including the acquisition of Chuy’s. Olive Garden and LongHorn Steakhouse, both of which also increased their footprints over the past year, followed similar patterns – with LongHorn Steakhouse enjoying a modest 0.5% uptick in overall foot traffic.
A closer look at monthly visitation data reveals a more nuanced – and positive – picture.
Between January and May 2025, Darden recorded nearly uniform monthly YoY overall visit growth, with only February slipping into the red due to harsh weather and a leap-year comparison. And in April and May, average visits per location rose YoY for both the portfolio and its leading brands – a testament to Darden’s ongoing strength.
Unsurprisingly, LongHorn Steakhouse continued to outperform, drawing customers with the promise of a reasonably priced cut of quality meat – a particularly enticing value proposition as beef prices continue to rise.
Darden’s performance on Mother’s Day, an important milestone for the company, further underscores its positive trajectory.
Olive Garden is a major Mother’s Day destination, and its performance this year didn’t disappoint. May 11th, 2025 was the Italian-American cuisine giant’s single busiest day of the past 12 months, with foot traffic soaring 152.9% compared to an average day and 101.8% compared to an average Sunday. LongHorn Steakhouse experienced a similar surge, and both chains topped their Mother’s Day traffic from last year – showcasing their ability to capitalize on this crucial occasion.
Like Texas Roadhouse, LongHorn Steakhouse is also a major Father’s Day draw. And given its strong performance this year, the chain will certainly be one to watch when June 15th rolls around.
Darden’s recent results show resilience and a clear knack for meeting consumer demand, even in a challenging market. How will the company continue to fare as the year progresses?
Follow Placer.ai's data-driven dining analyses to find out.
Burger King is the latest quick-service restaurant (QSR) brand to jump on the LTO bandwagon, introducing a limited-time menu inspired by the much-anticipated How to Train Your Dragon movie. And though the film isn’t set to hit theaters until June 13th, the offering – which launched on Tuesday, May 27th – already appears to be boosting foot traffic.
On the day of the launch, visits to Burger King rose 6.2% above the chain’s year-to-date (YTD) Tuesday average. Momentum continued to build throughout the week, with May 30th seeing an 11.1% visit bump compared to an average Friday – and emerging as Burger King’s busiest day of the year so far. Year over year, too, Burger King registered increased traffic during the week of the launch – a trend that could intensify once the movie premieres.
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Mall visits increased across all formats in May 2025 as consumer confidence improved. Indoor malls posted the largest gains with a 6.7% year-over-year (YoY) increase in visits, followed by open-air shopping centers (+5.0%) and outlet malls (+3.9%).
The rise in mall visits for a second month in a row suggests that April's positive YoY visit trends were more than a temporary pull-forward of consumer demand in response to tariff uncertainty. Instead, the latest data indicates that the retail sector remains resilient despite the broader economic headwinds.
Some of May's strength was likely also driven by the sector's strong showing over Memorial Day weekend. Indoor malls and open-air shopping centers saw their YoY visits spike on the Saturday and Sunday before the holiday – in contrast with the wider brick-and-mortar retail industry that saw relatively flat YoY visit numbers over the long weekend.
This suggests that shopping centers continue to operate as more than just retail destinations. And malls' entertainment offerings – specifically movie theaters, which posted impressive Memorial Day box office numbers – likely helped boost traffic despite the more muted Memorial Day performance of other discretionary categories.
Diving into the demographic breakdown of mall visitors in May 2025 reveals the median household income (HHI) fell slightly for audiences across all mall formats – while visitation trends show an increase in average visit duration.
This suggests that malls' current resilience is not due to their effective appeal to higher-income shoppers during times of economic uncertainty, as the median HHI in their trade areas is on par with (and even slightly lower than) May 2024 levels. Instead, the longer visit duration suggests that top-tier malls are succeeding by positioning themselves as social hubs and experiential destinations – using their diverse tenant base to keep visits up also during times of reduced retail activity.
Malls are continuing to adapt to evolving consumer behaviors, with top-tier malls leaning into their role as multifaceted social and entertainment venues – positioning them well for continued growth and sustained relevance in a dynamic economic landscape.
For more data-driven consumer insights, visit placer.ai/anchor.
1. Idaho and South Carolina have emerged as significant domestic migration magnets over the past four years. Between January 2021 and 2025, both states gained over 3.0% of their populations through domestic migration. Other Mountain and Sun Belt states – including Nevada, Montana, and Florida – also drew significant inflow, while California, New York, and Illinois experienced the greatest outmigration.
2. Interstate migration cooled noticeably in 2024. During the 12-month period ending January 2025, California, New York and Illinois saw their outflows slow dramatically, while domestic migration hotspots like Georgia, Texas, and Florida saw inflows flatten to zero. A similar cooling trend emerged on a CBSA level.
3. Still, some states continued to see notable relocation activity over the past year. In 2024, Idaho, South Carolina, and North Dakota drew the most relocators relative to their populations. And among the nation’s ten largest states, North Carolina led with an inflow of 0.4%.
4. Phoenix remained a rare bright spot among the nation’s ten largest metro areas. The CBSA was the only major analyzed hub to maintain positive net domestic migration through 2024.
Over the past several years, the United States has experienced significant domestic migration shifts, driven by factors like remote work, housing affordability, and regional economic opportunities. As some areas reap the benefits of population inflows, others grapple with outflows tied to higher living costs and evolving workplace dynamics.
This report dives into the location analytics to explore where Americans have moved since 2021 – and how these patterns began to change in 2024.
Since 2021, Americans have flocked toward warmer climates, expansive natural scenery, and more affordable housing options – particularly in the Mountain and Sun Belt states.
Between January 2021 and January 2025, South Carolina led the nation in positive net domestic migration – drawing an influx of newcomers equivalent to 3.6% of its January 2025 population. (This metric is referred to as a state’s “net migrated percent of population.”) Next in line was Idaho with a 3.4% net migrated percent of population, followed by Nevada, (2.8%), Montana (2.8%), Florida (2.1%), South Dakota (2.1%), Wyoming (2.0%), North Carolina (2.0%), and Tennessee (1.9%). Texas saw positive net migration of just 0.9% during the same period. However, the Lone Star State’s large overall population means a substantial number of newcomers in absolute terms.
Meanwhile, California (-2.2%), New York (-2.1%), and Illinois (-1.9%) experienced the greatest outflows relative to their populations. This exodus was driven largely by soaring housing costs and the rise of remote work, which lowered barriers to moving out of high-priced areas.
Between January 2024 and January 2025, many of the same broad patterns persisted, but at a more moderate clip – suggesting a stabilization of domestic migration nationwide. This leveling off could reflect factors such as rising mortgage interest rates, which dampened home buying and selling, as well as the increased push for employees to return to the office.
Still, South Carolina (+0.6%) and Idaho (+0.6%) remained among the top inflow states. The two hotspots were joined – and slightly surpassed – by North Dakota (+0.8%), where even modest waves of newcomers make a big impact due to the state’s lower population base. A wealth of affordable housing and a strong job market have positioned North Dakota as a particularly attractive destination for U.S. relocators in recent years. And Microsoft and Amazon’s establishment of major presences around Fargo has strengthened the region’s economy.
Meanwhile, California (-0.3%), New York (-0.2%), and Illinois (-0.1%) continued to post negative net migration, but at a markedly slower rate than in prior years. And notably, several states that had been struggling with outflow, such as Michigan, Minnesota, Virginia, Ohio, and Oregon, began showing minor positive inflow during the same 12-month window. As home affordability erodes in pandemic-era hot spots like the Mountain states and Sun Belt, these areas may emerge as new destinations for Americans seeking lower costs of living.
Zooming in on the ten most populous U.S. states offers an even clearer picture of how domestic migration patterns have stabilized over the past year. The graph below shows a side-by-side comparison of domestic migration patterns during the 36-month period ending January 2024 and the 12-month period ending January 2025.
California, New York, and Illinois saw population outflows slow dramatically during the 12 months ending January 2025 – while domestic migration magnets such as Georgia, Texas, and Florida saw inflow flatten to zero. Meanwhile, Ohio, Michigan, and Pennsylvania flipped from slightly negative to slightly positive net migration – incremental upticks that could signal a possible turnaround.
The only “Big Ten” pandemic-era migration magnet to maintain strong inflow in 2024 was North Carolina – which saw a 0.4% influx in 2024 as a result of interstate moves.
A closer look at the top four states receiving outmigration from California and New York (October 2020 to October 2024) reveals that residents leaving both states tended to settle in nearby areas or in Florida.
Among those leaving New York, 37.4% ended up in neighboring states – 21.1% moved to New Jersey, 9.2% to Pennsylvania, and 7.1% to Connecticut. But an astonishing 28.8% decamped all the way to the Sunshine State, trading the Northeast’s colder climate for Florida sunshine.
Similarly, 20.1% of California leavers chose to stay nearby, moving to Nevada (11.5%) or Arizona (8.6%). Another 19.1% moved to Texas, and 8.0% moved to Florida, making it the fourth-largest destination for Californians.
Zooming in on CBSA-level data – focusing on the nation’s ten largest metropolitan areas, all with over five million people – reveals a similar picture of slowing domestic migration over the last year.
Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, and Washington, D.C. – four cities that experienced notable population outflows between January 2021 and January 2024 – saw those outflows flatten considerably. For these metros, this leveling-off may serve as a promising sign that the waves of departures seen in recent years may have begun to subside. Conversely, Houston and Dallas, which both welcomed positive net migration between January 2021 and January 2024, registered zero-net domestic migration in 2024. Atlanta, for its part, remained flat in both of the analyzed periods.
In Miami, however, outmigration persisted at a substantial rate. Despite Florida’s overall status as a domestic migration magnet, Miami lost 2.6% of its population to domestic net migration between January 2020 and January 2024 – and another 1.0% between January 2024 and January 2025. As one of Florida’s most expensive housing markets, Miami may be losing some residents to other parts of the state or elsewhere in the region. Meanwhile, Philadelphia, which lost 0.3% of its population to net domestic migration between January 2021 and January 2024, continued losing residents at a slightly faster pace in 2024 – another 0.3% just last year.
Of the ten biggest CBSAs nationwide, only Phoenix continued to see a net domestic migration gain through 2024 (+0.2%). This highlights the CBSA’s continued draw as a (relative) relocation hotspot even in 2024’s cooling market.
Who are the domestic relocators heading to Phoenix?
From October 2020 to October 2024, the top five metro areas sending residents to the Phoenix CBSA each registered median household incomes (HHIs) of $73K to $98K – surpassing Phoenix’s own median of $72K. This suggests that many of those moving in are arriving from wealthier, often more expensive metro areas – for whom even Phoenix’s high-priced market may offer more affordable living.
Overall, domestic migration patterns appear to have cooled in 2024, reflecting economic and societal trends that have slowed the rush from pricey coastal hubs to more affordable regions. Yet states like South Carolina, Idaho, and North Dakota – as well as metro areas like Phoenix – continue to attract new arrivals, paving the way for evolving regional demographics in the years to come.
In today’s retail landscape, consumer behavior is influenced by a multitude of factors, directly impacting the success of products and brands. This report explores the latest trends in value perception, shopping behavior, and media consumption that impact which brands consumers are most likely to engage with – and how.
In the apparel space, consumers continue to prioritize value and unique merchandise.
Analysis of visits to various apparel categories reveals a steady increase in the share of visits going to off-price retailers and thrift stores at the expense of traditional apparel chains.
And the popularity of off-price chains and thrift stores appears to be widespread across multiple audience segments. Analyzing trade area data with the Experian: Mosaic psychographic dataset reveals a clear preference for second-hand retailers among both younger (ages 25-30) and older (51+) consumer segments. Meanwhile, middle-class parents aged 36-45 with teenagers – the “Family Union” segment – are significantly more likely to shop at off-price apparel stores, highlighting their emphasis on buying new, while saving both time and money.
This suggests that the powerful blend of treasure-hunting and deep value, central to both the off-price and thrift experiences, is driving traffic from a variety of audiences, and that other industries could benefit from combining affordability with the allure of unique products.
Diving deeper into the location intelligence for the apparel space further highlights thrift and off-price’s broad appeal – and that a combination of quality and price motivates consumers to visit different retailers.
Between 2019 and 2024, the share of Bloomingdale’s, Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, and Nordstrom visitors that also visited a Goodwill or Ross Dress for Less increased significantly.
And while this could mean that the current economic climate is causing some higher-income consumers to trade down to lower-priced retailers, it could also be that consumers are prioritizing sustainability and seeking value in terms of “bang for their buck” – shopping a combination of retailers depending on the cost versus quality considerations for each purchase.
Consumers increasingly expect to shop on their own terms, opting for a more flexible shopping experience that blurs the lines between traditional retail channels and categories.
Superstores and warehouse stores, for example, often evoke the image of navigating aisle after aisle of nearly every product imaginable – a time-consuming endeavor given the sheer size of their stores. But the latest location intelligence shows that more consumers are turning to these retailers for super-quick shopping trips.
Between 2019 and 2024, the share of visits lasting less than ten minutes at Target, Walmart, BJ’s Wholesale Club, Sam’s Club, and to a lesser extent Costco, rose steadily – perhaps due to increased use of flexible BOPIS (buy online, pick-up in-store) and curbside pick-up options. These stores may also be seeing a rise in consumers popping in to grab just a few items as-needed or to cherry-pick particular deals to complement their larger online shopping orders.
This trend highlights the demand for frictionless store experiences that allow visitors to conveniently shop or pick up orders even at large physical retailers.
And the breaking down of traditional retail silos isn’t limited to big-box chains. Diving into the data for quick service restaurants (QSR), fast casual chains, and grocery stores indicates that more consumers are also looking for new ways to grab a convenient bite.
Since 2019, grocery stores have been claiming an increasingly large share of the midday short visit pie – i.e. visits between 11:00 AM 3:00 PM lasting less than ten minutes – at the expense of QSR chains. This suggests that consumers seeking quick and affordable lunches are increasingly turning to grocery stores to pick up a few items or take advantage of self-service food bars. Notably, the rise in supermarket lunching hasn’t come at the expense of fast-casual restaurants, which have also upped their quick-service games – and have seen a small increase in their share of the quick lunchtime crowd over the past five years.
While some of QSR’s relative decline in short lunchtime visits could be due to discontent with rising fast-food prices, it’s clear that an increasing share of consumers see grocery and fast-casual chains as viable options during the lunch rush.
In 2025, tapping into hot trends and creating viral moments are among the most powerful tools for amplifying promotions and driving foot traffic to physical stores.
Retailers across categories have successfully harnessed the power of pop culture collaborations to generate excitement – and visits – by leaning into trending themes. On October 8th, 2024, for example, Wendy’s launched its epic Krabby Patty Collab, inspired by the beloved SpongeBob franchise. And during the week of the offering, the chain experienced a remarkable 21.5% increase in foot traffic compared to an average week that year.
Similarly, Crumbl – adept at creating buzz through manufactured scarcity – sparked a frenzy with the debut of its exclusive Olivia Rodrigo GUTS cookie. Initially available only at select locations near the artist’s concert venues, the cookie was launched nationwide for a limited time from August 19th to 24th, 2024. This buzz-driven release resulted in a 27.7% traffic surge during the week of the launch, as fans rushed to get a taste of the star-studded treat.
And it’s not just dining chains benefiting from these pop-culture moments. On February 16th, 2025, Bath & Body Works launched a Disney Princess-inspired fragrance line, perfect for fans of Cinderella, Ariel, Belle, Jasmine, Moana, and Tiana. The collaboration resonated, fueling a 23.2% visit spike for the chain.
While tapping into existing pop-culture trends has the ability to drive traffic, so does creating a new one. Analysis of movie theater visits on National Popcorn Day (Sunday, January 19th, 2025) shows how initiating a trend can spur social media engagement and impact in-person traffic to physical retail spaces.
National Popcorn Day was a successful promotional holiday across the movie theater industry in 2025. Both Regal Cinemas and AMC Theatres offered popcorn-based promotions on the day, but Cinemark’s “Bring Your Own Bucket” campaign, in particular, appears to have spurred a significant foot traffic boost during the event.
Visits to Cinemark on National Popcorn Day in 2025 increased 57.5% relative to the Sunday visit average for January and February 2025, as movie-goers showed off their out-of-the-bucket popcorn receptacles on social media. Clearly, by starting a trend that invited creativity and expression, Cinemark was able to amplify the impact of its National Popcorn Day promotion.
Location intelligence illuminates some of the key trends shaping consumer behavior in 2025. The data reveals that value-driven shopping, demand for flexibility across touchpoints, and the power of unique retail moments have the power to drive consumer engagement and the success of retail categories, brands, and products.
Placer.ai observes a panel of mobile devices in order to extrapolate and generate visitation insights for a variety of locations across the U.S. This panel covers only visitors from within the United States and does not represent or take into account international visitors.
Downtown districts in the nation’s major cities attract domestic travelers all year long with their iconic sights, lively entertainment, and diverse dining offerings. But each hub follows its own rhythm, shaped by distinct seasonal peaks and dips in visitor flow.
This white paper examines downtown hotel visitation patterns in four of the nation’s most popular destinations for domestic tourists: Miami, Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles. Focusing on 20 downtown hotels in each city, the analysis explores seasonal variations in domestic travel, city-specific dynamics, and differentiating factors.
Domestic tourism has rebounded strongly in recent years, and hotels in Miami and Chicago have been the biggest beneficiaries. In 2024, visits to analyzed hotels in each of these cities’ downtown areas grew by 8.9% and 7.4%, respectively, compared to 2023. Meanwhile, hotels in downtown and midtown Manhattan saw a more modest 2.0% increase, while Los Angeles experienced a slight year-over-year (YoY) decline in downtown hotel visits.
One factor that may be driving Miami and Chicago’s stronger performance is their higher proportion of long-distance visitors, defined as those visiting from over 250 miles away. Miami remains a top destination for snowbirds and spring breakers, while Chicago serves as a cultural and entertainment hub for the sprawling Midwest. These long-distance leisure travelers may be more likely to splurge on downtown hotel stays during their trips, helping drive hotel visit growth in the two cities.
By contrast, hotels in the Los Angeles and Manhattan city centers drew lower shares of domestic travelers coming from less than 250 miles away. These shorter-haul domestic tourists may be less likely to splurge on downtown hotels than those taking longer vacations. Both cities are also surrounded by numerous regional getaway options that can draw long-haul leisure travelers away from their downtown cores.
Each of the four analyzed cities has its own unique ebbs and flows – and city center hotel visits reflect these patterns. Miami, with its warm, sunny climate, experiences influxes of tourists during the winter and spring, with March seeing the biggest jump in downtown hotel visits last year (13.0% above the monthly visit average). Chicago, which thrives in the summer with its many festivals and events, saw its biggest downtown hotel visit bump in August. Meanwhile, Manhattan experienced a major uptick in December, likely fueled by holiday tourism and New Year celebrations, and Los Angeles visits were highest in the summertime.
What drives these seasonal visit peaks? Miami has long been a top tourism destination, especially in early spring, when snowbirds and spring breakers flock to the city for sun and relaxation. In recent years, the city has seen a rise in short-term domestic tourism, suggesting that the city is becoming increasingly popular for weekend getaways. According to the Placer.ai Tourism Dashboard, the share of domestic tourists staying just one or two nights grew from 71.7% in March 2022 to 78.3% in March 2024.
This shift aligns with an impressive increase in the magnitude of downtown Miami’s springtime hotel visit peak: In March 2022, visits to downtown hotels were 5.0% above the monthly average for the year, a share that more than doubled by 2024 to 12.9%.
These numbers may mean that more people are choosing to head to Miami for a quick break from the cold – and staying in downtown hotels to make the most of their short getaway.
Chicago’s major August visit spike was likely driven by the Windy City’s impressive lineup of major summer festivals, from Lollapalooza to the Chicago Air and Water Show, which draw thousands of attendees from across the country.
Lollapalooza fueled the largest visit spike to the city – between Thursday, August 1st and Sunday, August 4th, visits to downtown Chicago hotels surged between 51.1% and 63.8% above 2024 daily averages for those days of the week. The Air and Water Show and the Chicago Jazz Festival also generated significant hotel visit increases – highlighting the boost these events bring to the city’s tourism and hospitality sector.
The Big Apple draws a diverse mix of visitors throughout the year. But in December – the city’s peak tourist season – visitors pour in from all over the country to skate in Rockefeller Center, browse Fifth Avenue’s festive window displays and experience the city’s unique holiday magic.
And analyzing data from hotels in midtown and downtown Manhattan reveals a striking shift in the types of visitors who stay in the heart of NYC during the holiday season. While visitors from other urban centers dominated downtown hotel stays throughout most of the year – accounting for 47.9% of visits from January to November 2024 – their share dropped to 42.0% in December 2024. Meanwhile, the share of guests from suburban areas and small towns rose from 37.3% to 41.0%, and the share of guests from rural and semi-rural areas nearly doubled, from 3.5% to 6.1%.
These patterns suggest that, though Manhattan typically attracts a wide range of visitors, the holiday season is uniquely appealing to tourists from smaller towns and suburban areas. Understanding these trends can provide crucial context for hotels and civic stakeholders alike as they work to maximize the opportunities presented by the city’s December visit surge.
Los Angeles hotels also experience significant demographic shifts during peak season. In July, visits to downtown LA hotels surged by 15.3% relative to the 2024 monthly visit average. And a closer look at audience segmentation data suggests a corresponding surge in the share of "Flourishing Families" – an Experian: Mosaic segment consisting of affluent, middle-aged households with children. Throughout the year, "Flourishing Families" comprised between 7.7% and 8.7% of the census block groups (CBGs) driving visits to downtown LA hotels. But in July, this share jumped to 9.9%.
These families may be taking advantage of summer vacations to enjoy Los Angeles’ cultural attractions and entertainment. Hotels and city stakeholders who understand the appeal the city holds for this demographic can better cater to them through family-friendly promotions and strategic marketing efforts to target these households.
Downtowns are making a comeback – and hotels in the heart of the nation’s major tourist hubs are reaping the benefits. By understanding who frequents these downtown hotels and when, local businesses and civic leaders can optimize their resource management and strategic planning to make the most of these opportunities.
