Portland downtown hotels are still struggling to recover from the pandemic

The Portland Business Journal reported this week that hotels in downtown Portland are still struggling years later to recover from the pandemic. According to the commercial real estate analytics firm CoStar, the occupancy rate for downtown Portland hotels was roughly 62% last year – nearly 10% less than their pre-pandemic occupancy levels in 2019. In another ominous sign of the market’s recovery, the revenue the hotels generated per room was $13 less last year than what they earned in 2019. Recovery for other downtown businesses, including restaurants and commercial real estate, has also been slow. A recent report from Travel Oregon, meanwhile, showed that spending on hotels and motels by visitors to the Portland region increased by 2% last year from 2024. That might suggest that business travelers and tourists are returning to the area, but choosing to stay overnight and spend their money outside of downtown. Sara Edwards is a staff reporter at the Portland Business Journal who covers commercial real estate. She joins us to explain the grim outlook facing Portland’s downtown hotels.