- Last-minute World Cup bookings boosted L.A. hotel occupancy.
- The city faced tourism headwinds during the tournament.
- Hotels near the stadium saw higher demand.
LOS ANGELES HOTELS rebounded after a surge in last-minute World Cup bookings boosted occupancy and room rates. Hotels that had feared weak demand saw fans book closer to match days, filling rooms before the city's final games.
The late bookings reversed concerns raised weeks before the tournament, according to the Los Angeles Times.
An early May survey by the American Hotel and Lodging Association found that 80 percent of respondents said bookings were below expectations, while more than 65 percent of L.A. hotels said reservations were lower than in a typical summer.
The Times said hotel operators blamed slow bookings on visa barriers, the distance between hotels and match venues and high ticket prices. But demand picked up before matches, lifting occupancy across parts of the city.
The Pierside in Santa Monica benefited from the late bookings as tourists chose to stay near the beach despite the longer trip to SoFi Stadium. The hotel was sold out for the weekend.
“We’ll have a day or two gap, but other than that we’ve been full,” said a Pierside manager. “I think beach-side hotels have been busier, because tourists are more interested in going to the beach while here.”
Hotels near the stadium also saw higher demand, the Times reported. The Anthem Hotel in the Stadium District exceeded expectations as it welcomed domestic and international visitors. Its remaining rooms were selling for more than $500 a night late in the week.
“Many guests are planning longer stays, using match days as the centerpiece of a broader Los Angeles itinerary,” said Ruben Flores, general manager at the hotel, according to the Times. “Being in the heart of the Stadium District puts us in a unique position to welcome fans who want the energy of the tournament to extend beyond the stadium.”
Downtown Los Angeles also saw a rise in bookings before the July 2 Spain-Austria knockout match after FIFA canceled a reservation for thousands of hotel rooms reserved for staff, media and other stakeholders.
AHLA said the booking pattern reflected a trend of younger international travelers waiting until shortly before major events to finalize travel plans in search of deals.
“Demand has picked up, consistent with a recent trend toward shorter booking windows for events of this caliber,” said Rosanna Maietta, AHLA president and CEO. “Unlike typical leisure travel, many travelers finalized plans and secured tickets closer to the start of the games.”
Not all hotels shared in the rebound. Hotel June, near Los Angeles International Airport, said bookings remained below expectations despite steady occupancy.
“We were expecting more reservations, but I think it’s because the rates have gone up,” Kira Moreno of Hotel June told the Times. “We have still been steady but not been too full or too busy, pretty similar to any other day.”
The Times said Airbnb drew visitors with promotions, including a World Cup package offering free match tickets with select stays averaging $365 a night.
The report said the tournament came as Los Angeles faced tourism challenges. International visitors fell 5.5 percent last year, the first annual decline since the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
Immigration raids, wildfires, a 21 percent drop in Canadian visitors and higher flight costs weighed on travel. International air travel to Los Angeles County also fell 30 percent between August and November 2025, the newspaper reported.
In May, AHLA joined AAHOA in backing the Los Angeles City Council's decision to delay a $30-an-hour minimum wage for hotel workers to 2030 from 2028. Negotiations on the Citywide Hotel Worker Minimum Wage Ordinance continue.
