Hotel occupancy rates decline

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Hotel occupancy rates — a key indicator of the health of the state’s tourism industry — declined nearly 5 percent in Utah last month compared with last year.

Figures from the Rocky Mountain Lodging Association show the statewide occupancy rate in October was 62.2 percent, down from 66.8 percent in 2007.

Salt Lake County saw a decline from 72.1 percent in 2007 to 66.8 percent last month.

Larry Hansen, executive director of the Utah Hotel & Lodging Association, says he’s not happy about the decline, but says Utah is still fortunate to be doing better than it was following the Sept. 11 attacks.

In 2001, occupancy rates across Utah were about 54 percent

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