CHICAGO, Sept. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- TravelCLICK's quarterly eMonitor results indicate continued robust health for the hotel industry based on electronic distribution performance for the second quarter of 2006. The data shows that worldwide electronic hotel revenue from the Global Distribution Systems (GDS) and key Internet sites increased 13.7 percent over the second quarter of 2005. The number of electronic room nights booked for the second quarter increased 5.7 percent over the same time last year, while the Average Daily Rate (ADR) increased by 7.6 percent. The average length of stay for the second quarter 2006 was 2.12 nights, nearly the same as last year.

TravelCLICK's proprietary database of electronic distribution performance provides a comprehensive foundation for data analysis and trend forecasting that is used by the global hospitality industry in the development of integrated distribution strategy. Observations for the market based on this latest data include:

-- Travel Agency room nights through the GDS will continue its growth trend surpassing 100MM room night by the end of 2006. -- Bookings through GDS Powered Internet sites will continue to decline as Merchant programs expand their reach globally and technology advancements make it easier for hotels to do business direct with online wholesalers. -- The GDS will continue its position as one of the highest ADR channels tracking 30+ percent higher than its Internet counterparts. -- Top markets including New York, London and Hong Kong will continue to trend with their respective economies while new fast growth markets emerge into 2007, such as Shanghai, Beijing, Delhi & Bangalore. (See TravelCLICK eMonitor regional releases.)

"The proliferation of the Internet drives the aggressive growth of brand website and key merchant sites, while GDS and travel agent related hotel bookings continue to show healthy 5-7 percent growth across global markets," said TravelCLICK Vice President of Product Management/eMarketing Products John Hach. "Hotels that understand these trends and their impact on hotel performance can build a stronger distribution strategy and execute with confidence to maximize electronic channel presence through integrated distribution technology, marketing and intelligence capabilities."

eMonitor results are compiled from TravelCLICK's comprehensive proprietary database, which is the exclusive source of hotel industry electronic distribution data from the Amadeus, Galileo, Sabre and Worldspan GDS. TravelCLICK's eMonitor also includes hotel bookings made through third-party travel Internet websites powered by Pegasus Solutions.

Travel Agent Component

Travel agent bookings represented 81.7 percent of total room nights. The travel agent component of GDS bookings had a 7.6 percent increase in ADR and a 13.3 percent increase in revenue versus the second quarter of 2005. Travel agents also continued to be a key source of higher rate business for hotels. The average rate for room nights booked through travel agents was 36.4 percent higher than the average rate for room nights booked via the Internet.

Year-to-date for 2006, travel agent hotel room nights via the GDS were up 6.8 percent, driving a 6.3 percent growth in ADR from the same period in 2005.

Internet Component

Internet room nights, sourced from consumer online transactions on Pegasus-powered third-party sites, showed a gain of 7.6 percent compared to the second quarter of 2005. ADR was up 7.8 percent for Internet bookings; revenue was up 16.0 percent compared to the same period last year.

Second Quarter 2006 Room Nights % Change ADR % Change Total GDS and Pegasus Hotel e-Commerce 32,809,331 +5.7% $145.04 +7.6% Travel Agent Component 26,788,949 +5.3% $152.50 +7.6% Consumer Internet Component 6,020,382 +7.6% $111.82 +7.8% Year-to-Date 2006 Room Nights % Change ADR % Change Total GDS and Pegasus Hotel e-Commerce 62,678,744 +6.6% $142.44 +6.3% Travel Agent Component 52,144,265 +6.8% $149.13 +6.3% Consumer Internet Component 10,534,479 +5.6% $109.33 +5.6% GDS Performance by Market Segment

Results for the second quarter of 2006 by industry market segment are shown below for GDS bookings only. All market segments showed increases in ADR compared to the second quarter of last year; the luxury, mid-scale and economy markets also had increases in room nights.

Second Quarter 2006 Market Segment Room Nights % Change ADR % Change Luxury 924,097 +10.0% $348.94 +8.8% Upscale 10,323,255 0.0% $182.21 +8.1% Mid-Scale 12,165,868 +4.4% $118.37 +8.3% Economy 2,509,358 +9.3% $81.15 +7.6% Year-to-date 2006 Market Segment Room Nights % Change ADR % Change Luxury 1,741,327 +10.4% $338.89 +6.4% Upscale 20,305,384 +1.9% $178.48 +7.0% Mid-Scale 23,535,296 +5.5% $115.72 +6.8% Economy 4,658,275 +10.3% $80.42 +7.5% Top Destination Markets

The top 10 worldwide destination markets in room nights for GDS and Pegasus third-party powered websites, in order, were:

Second Quarter 2006 Top Destination Markets Room Nights % Change ADR % Change New York 1,441,773 +4.2% $254.75 +10.2% Los Angeles 1,096,050 +4.8% $148.58 +8.7% Washington/ Baltimore 1,014,814 +1.4% $181.43 +10.6% San Francisco/ Oakland/SanJose 994,645 +6.1% $148.82 +6.0% London 895,335 +4.3% $252.85 +3.0% Chicago 872,700 +9.9% $156.99 +9.9% Dallas 620,829 +5.6% $115.91 +10.5% Atlanta 543,877 +2.2% $120.61 +9.4% Boston 525,364 +7.1% $168.91 +9.7% Houston 472,851 +8.0% $124.19 +11.5%

To receive a free listing of second quarter results by top 50 cities worldwide in electronic bookings, please email emonitor@travelclick.net. GDS hotel booking summaries by individual local market also are available at http://www.travelclick.net/ .

About TravelCLICK

TravelCLICK ( http://www.travelclick.net/ ) is the leading provider of hotel business process management (BPM) solutions that drive long-term profitability. TravelCLICK helps hotels maximize asset ROI by combining innovative market analysis and proven industry best practices with advanced technology to develop and implement high-return strategies. The company offers a full set of solutions including reservations and distribution management, market intelligence-based decision support, and marketing services. Established in 1996 and headquartered in the Chicago area, TravelCLICK has more than 12,000 customers in 140 countries.

CONTACT: Katrina Pruitt-Andrews of TravelCLICK, +1-410-257-9154,
kpandrews@travelclick.net

Web site: http://www.travelclick.net/