Maximizing hotel revenue during peak season: The festivals driving summer 2025 room rates

Some festivals attract hundreds of thousands of visitors, becoming powerful economic engines for their host cities. For hotels, they represent a critical window to boost occupancy and revenue - if they’re ready for the surge.

We’ve analyzed our latest data to spotlight the most impactful and profitable festivals still to come in 2025, along with insights to help you prepare.

Copenhell, Copenhagen

June 18-21

Peak pricing during week(s) of event (USD): $428

Change in peak pricing compared to annual average: 78%

Scandinavia is renowned for being a metalhead mecca, with many bands originating from these northerly climes and a major fanbase spread across the region, as well as in nearby Poland and Germany. 

This puts Copenhell into the rarified company of major annual music festivals that boost surrounding hospitality markets every year.

While bands like Puke Wolf and Wormrot might not appeal to everyone, their presence certainly isn't deterring die-hard heavy rock fans this year. In fact, a diverse lineup of hardcore bands, alongside well-known acts such as The Prodigy and Slipknot, is drawing fans in.

This is driving demand, and advertised pricing, for Copenhagen’s hotels up to their highest levels for the year. 

At the time of writing, average advertised hotel pricing for a standard room sits at $428 during the week of the festival, which is 78% above the overall average for the year. 

At the absolute peak point of demand on June 19, room rates hit a high point of $610.

If we look at occupancy and demand with roughly a month to go, it is clear why hotels are confident in posting such high prices. Forward looking demand indicators sit at massively elevated levels, peaking at three-and-a-half times normal levels, while 94% of inventory in Copenhagen is already sold. 

If you have any remaining rooms in Copehagen, then it is time to rock out.

Summerfest and Harley Davidson Homecoming, Milwaukee

June 19-21, June 26-28, July 2-5, July 10-13

Peak pricing during week(s) of event (USD): $191 (Summerfest) and $196 (Harley Davidson Homecoming)

Change in peak pricing compared to annual average: 41% (Summerfest) and 45% (Harley Davidson Homecoming)

Summerfest is a fixture of Milwaukee’s cultural life, drawing in hundreds of thousands of attendees and is a staple of the local hospitality market. 

The 2025 version of Summerfest looks set to continue this tradition, with strong demand across the three key weekends when the festival is held, peaking during the middle weekend, when the Killers are scheduled to play. 

Forward-looking demand indicators are even higher though shortly after Summerfest for July 11-12, which is when the Harley Davidson Homecoming hits the city. This will be headlined by country music legends Hank Williams and Chris Stapleton, leading to demand hitting two-and-a-half times normal levels on July 12.

Despite these strong demand drivers, local markets appear relatively subdued on pricing, with rates largely in line with last year’s actualized levels.

Compared to the average advertised rate for a standard hotel room across the whole of 2025, prices are up 41% and 45% for Summerfest and the Harley Davidson Homecoming, marking a significant increase.

However, across the weeks of Summerfest, pricing is up to $185 on average, compared to $179 in 2024, which represents an increase only very slightly ahead of headline inflation in the US.

Part of this may stem from relatively weak early demand indicators for the opening week of Summerfest, which could be misleading revenue managers.

When comparing daily demand indicators for the first week of Summerfest to the same period last year, our composite measure is down by double digits on most days.

However, demand begins to build as the event progresses, especially in the final week, where daily indicators are projected to surpass 2024 levels, with year-on-year demand up 14% on average.

Rather than focusing on a slow start, revenue managers should look ahead and aim to maximize profits during the final two weeks of Summerfest, when demand peaks. That momentum can then carry into an aggressive pricing strategy for the Harley-Davidson Homecoming Festival.

Tomorrowland, Antwerp

July 18-20 and July 25-27

Peak pricing during week(s) of event (USD): $247

Change in peak pricing compared to annual average: 53%

Another event that regularly features when we look at key festivals, Tomorrowland follows up a strong 2024, with potentially an even better 2025 for hoteliers. 

Weekly average advertised hotel room pricing during the second weekend of Tomorrowland rose to $247 this year, 53% higher than the average across the whole year and a fifth higher than actualized prices at the same point of the festival in 2024.

This is coming off strong forward demand indicators and early bookings, as demand hits over three times typical levels for the city in this second weekend of the festival. 

Where days overlap with the 2024 iteration of Tomorrowland, daily demand indicators exceed 12 months ago, with our composite demand index up +17%, +8% and +32% on June 19, 20, and 26, respectively, while well under half of hotels are available for the second weekend at the time of writing.

All signs point to another year of booming beats and elevated prices for both Tomorrowland and Antwerp.

Lollapalooza, Chicago

July 31 – August 3

Peak pricing during week(s) of event (USD): $256

Change in peak pricing compared to annual average: 42%

Lollapalooza is another prominent music festival that regularly features in the world’s biggest and best and is set for another strong outing in 2025, with the festival driving hotel room prices in Chicago to their highest projected level for the year. 

These sit at a weekly average of $256 during Lollapalooza, with average advertised rates for a standard hotel room hitting a high of just over $300 on the nights of August 1 and 2.

These two days are the key point for hoteliers to maximize revenues, as these are also currently the most likely days to have On-The-Books (OTB) reservations, with more than half of hotel inventory already sold out across the city on July 31, August and 2.

Lollapalooza 2025 is also set to outperform 2024 according to our daily forward demand indicators, which show increased interest across all days that overlap with the 2024 festival, most notably on August 2, where the composite measure is up +16% YoY.

Edinburgh Fringe, Edinburgh

August 2-26

Peak pricing during week(s) of event (USD): $630

Change in peak pricing compared to annual average: 96%

One of the star performers in global hospitality is the Scottish capital. Hotels here have been able to increase prices consistently year-after-year post pandemic, with major events such as Hogmanay (New Year’s) and the Eras Tour further swelling an already positive trend in local bookings. 

This direction continues in 2025, with the Edinburgh Festival reaching new highs in demand and advertised hotel rates. 

What’s especially remarkable this year is just how strong demand is, with excellent YoY growth. 

Our forward-looking demand indicator measure shows that elements such as searches and early bookings are up YoY in a major way. Across August, the composite index is up by an average of +8%, with the best days up well over +30% compared to those in 2024, led by a massive +43% jump in YoY forward demand indicator levels on August 12.

The effect of the Edinburgh Festival is perhaps even more apparent when it comes to OTB, where the period of the festival from August 2 to 26 correlates perfectly to a period of elevated OTB, with 55% of rooms in Edinburgh booked across the event already. 

This exceptionally high level of consumer interest is driving prices to the highest across all festivals analyzed, reaching a weekly average of $630 for the week starting August 4 - double the annual average.

At the daily level, the peak average hotel room rate during the festival is a striking $817 on August 9, based on current pricing.

Louder Than Life, Louisville

September 18-21 

Peak pricing during week(s) of event (USD): $233

Change in peak pricing compared to annual average: 75%

Once again demonstrating that metal fans are still willing to spend the cash to see their favourite artists, Louder Than Life in Louisville, Kentucky is producing hotel rates 75% above the typical level for 2025. 

Now in its eleventh year, Louder Than Life will draw 180,000 to 200,000 attendees to see some major names, including the Deftones and Slayer.

The boost to local demand that comes with this major influx of fans is pushing average hotel room prices to $233, which would be the highest level for the year and represent 15% growth YoY above the average achieved during the festival in 2024. 

The absolute peak for prices falls on September 19, when a standard hotel room will cost a visitor just under $300 on average. 

Austin City Limits, Austin

October 3-12 

Peak pricing during week(s) of event (USD): $233

Change in peak pricing compared to annual average: 33%

Rounding out our list is the Austin City Limits Festival, which is generating some strong demand and leading to solid room rates, but is even more important in the context of what follows immediately after: the US Grand Prix. 

These two events are sandwiched together, making October an absolutely critical period for Austin’s hospitality market.

Demand during the festival period in 2025 is significantly higher than usual, particularly on Saturdays. This increased demand is pushing standard room rates considerably above $200. Rates are projected to peak in the final week, averaging $233, which is 33% higher than the typical 2025 rate and slightly surpasses the rates from the previous year's festival.

Then, just one week later, Formula 1 arrives in Austin, creating an even bigger spike, with the average rate during that week being $334 at the time of writing, peaking at $450. 

Hoteliers therefore need to consider whether they can entice visitors to stay on from Austin City Limits and burn those valuable vacation days throughout the week until race day.

Experimenting with length of stay restrictions and upsell offers in the week following on from City Limits therefore could be an interesting tactic to capture business from both

Leverage data to maximize room revenue around events

Festivals can be a huge bonus for local hotel markets, but their impact isn't always guaranteed, and not every market reacts the same way.

Just like some concert tours sell out cities while others barely make a dent, festivals vary widely in how much demand they generate. One year you might fill your rooms at ten times the usual rate. The next, those same prices could leave them empty.

This is why relying solely on historical performance isn't enough anymore. To really make the most of these opportunities, you need real-time forward looking insight into market conditions, not just a look back at what happened.

Data is your competitive advantage.

Whether you're gearing up for a brand new festival, a long-running annual event, or even a smaller, niche gathering, success hinges on spotting opportunities before your competitors do and having the right tools to act on them immediately.

With real-time demand signals, pricing trends, and local market patterns, Lighthouse gives you the visibility to stay ahead, so you can adjust rates with confidence, fill rooms at the right price, and capture every opportunity.

Contact our team to start managing demand on your terms, before it passes you by.