Others are more bearish. In a recent note, Jefferies analyst Ian Rennardson said the cyclical pressure on revenue per available room (RevPar) will intensify in the next year, with competition from Airbnb and its peers (including HomeAway, Onefinestay and Wimdu).
One of the companies singled out in that note was Sheraton-owner Starwood Hotels (US:HOT) whose asset-heavy model Mr Rennardson believes makes it more vulnerable to the sharing economy challenge. Yesterday, Starwood was snapped up by US rival chain Marriott International (US:MAR) for $12.2bn (£8bn), a 4 per cent discount to Friday's closing price for Starwood's shares, already down 14 per cent since April.
Some have been quick to link the merger with the threat posed by the tech alternatives. This is despite executives from the two companies being on "very, very friendly" terms with Airbnb, according to the platform's chief executive Brian Chesky, and the spate of deal-making engulfing the sector prompted by a peak in the cycle.
But if there is a nascent threat from the sharing economy, it appears that it is supply and not price that hotels should be worried about. Last week, TechCrunch published research from Bank of America which suggested that across the US, the average Airbnb stay is a lot pricier than the average hotel. Having analysed hundreds of thousands of listings, BoA found Airbnb guests paid 60 per cent more than the average daily rate (ADR) at hotels in the US. In the top 25 markets, the disparity was slimmer at a premium of just 30 per cent, but rose to 81 per cent outside those markets.
Then again, it's important to remember that Airbnb customers, who stay longer and are less likely to be on business trips, are looking for a different experience. That - along with lower rates for extra guests (which is fairly typical in my experience) - may well justify the premium.
