USA, Arlington, Virginia. March 10, 2021

Knowland, the leader in AI-powered data for hotels, convention and visitor bureaus, conference centers and other meeting venues, today released its ongoing monthly meetings and events data for February. The numbers reveal that February U.S. group meetings volume increased 109.7 percent over the previous month.

February picked up nicely with consistent growth each week. Even with a few key markets still constrained due to COVID restrictions, meetings are growing across the country.

• Average attendees remained stable - The average number of attendees in February 2021 was 39 compared to 39 in February 2020
• Average square footage used increased - The average space used in February 2021 was 1,560 square feet while meetings in February 2020 averaged 1,300 square feet.
• Individual market growth - For this month, the top five growth markets were Daytona Beach, FL, Boston, MA, Columbus, OH, Philadelphia, PA and Milwaukee, WI.
• Corporate meetings represent the largest market segment - Corporate meetings produced most of the activity accounting for 61.9 percent of total meetings for the month.

Kristi White, vice president of product management, Knowland, said: "February realized significant growth across all markets. While in January, the most significant growth was in the Top 25 markets -- this month, we saw that growth extend across secondary and tertiary markets as well. Even areas still under restrictions are beginning to see smaller meetings return to the market. These are all positive signs and should continue to grow as the year progresses and more of the populace is vaccinated."