In a prepared statement, the firm says the average weekly rate at company-owned hotels was $201.09 last month, compared with $198.18 in March, 2000.

Unless the economic downturn worsens, the company believes its revenue per available room comparisons for the remainder of 2000 will be in line with the March increase.

In the statement, suburban CEO Chuck Criscillis says the increases matched their expectations. "They were particularly gratifying in light of last week's preliminary report by Smith Travel Services that year-over-year hotel industry occupancy rates declined between one and two percent in March," Criscillis says. "Clearly our hotels are operating well in an increasingly difficult economic environment."