Great post today from hotelmanagment.net: the higher the ADR and occupancy, the lower your guest satisfaction scores will be.  From the article:

Global customer satisfaction with hospitality experiences continued to decline during the fourth quarter of 2013, according to new data released by Market Metrix.  Customer satisfaction scores declined two tenths of a point in the Americas during the fourth quarter, and seven tenths of a point versus the same period a year ago. Scores also declined in Europe. Strengthening occupancy and higher prices during this period appear to be the likely reasons.

We easily spotted this trend starting in about 2008.  As soon as the economy struggled and hotel rates plummeted, guest satisfaction shot right up.  Many of the numbers reported by JD Power were record highs.  It turns out that people love a great deal.  From the article:

According to Dr. Jonathan Barsky, co-founder and chief research officer at Market Metrix, “Rates always have an impact on customer satisfaction, and with strong RevPAR growth we have seen slipping satisfaction scores in North America and Europe.  Asia, on the other hand, appears to be less price-sensitive, with increasing rates having less of an impact on the overall guest experience.”

There you have it.  As we continue to increase rates, we are going to have to work much harder on the service side to keep guest satisfaction up.

Source:  Hotel Management Article