What is pickup?
Updated
Pickup is the number of rooms booked over a set period, usually the last day or week, for a given future date.
Why does it matter to a small hotel?
Pickup is the pulse of your bookings. A single total of rooms sold tells you where you are; pickup tells you how fast you are getting there. If a night gains four rooms in a day, demand is arriving. If it gains none for a week, something has changed, whether that is a price, a competitor or a cancelled event. Reading pickup against the same point last year turns it into a useful signal: you are ahead, level or behind. Because it moves daily, a regular look catches changes while there is still time to act.
A worked example
On a Saturday 21 days ahead, the 24-room hotel has 8 rooms booked. A week later it has 14, so the weekly pickup is 6 rooms. Last year at the same point it had 11. The hotel is three rooms ahead, so it holds its rate at £165 and checks again in a few days rather than discounting. If pickup had been zero, it would review the price and the offers. If you want pickup kept up to date for you, try RatePulse free.
Related terms
Questions people ask
What period should I measure pickup over?
The last 24 hours and the last 7 days are the common choices. Use both: one shows sudden moves, the other the trend.
Is pickup the same as pace?
They are close. Pickup counts rooms gained over a period. Pace compares your bookings on hand today with the same point in a past period.
Should cancellations be counted?
Yes. Net pickup subtracts cancellations, so it reflects how many rooms you actually hold.