San Antonio Business Journal: Economic turmoil a threat to SA visitor industry

The San Antonio Business Journal leveraged First Quarter 2025 data from Source Strategies to frame the current state of the San Antonio hospitality industry. The article, Economic turmoil a threat to SA visitor industry, not only quotes Source Strategies data, but also provides additional insights from other industry stakeholders like the San Antonio Hotel & Lodging Association, Visit San Antonio, and the San Antonio Visitor Alliance.

New first-quarter 2025 data from Source Strategies, obtained by the Business Journal, indicates that San Antonio experienced the largest percentage drop in hotel room demand among major Texas metros. The number of rooms sold plummeted nearly 7% to just under 2.5 million, and overall revenue decreased by nearly 3% to approximately $358 million compared to the same period the previous year.

The San Antonio hospitality market has not fully recovered from the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic, and the beginning of 2025 has not been auspicious.

“The performance metrics for San Antonio have not been good thus far in 2025,” said Bill Brendel, president and CEO of the San Antonio Visitor Alliance.

Hospitality is a critical industry in San Antonio, historically with a mix of conventions, groups, and tourism. The post-pandemic environment has changed that mix.

Leisure travel could become more critical as Bass has warned that group attendance could shrink if more organizations pull back due to economic concerns.

The entire situation has left local industry stakeholders unsure of the best path forward.

 Asked what industry leaders can do to expand business in an unstable economic environment, San Antonio Hotel & Lodging Association President and CEO Michelle Madson said, “I don’t know if anybody has the answer to that question now.”

Read the full article, Economic turmoil a threat to SA visitor industry, on the San Antonio Business Journal website.