Updated : May 15, 2025
As Formula 1 roared into Miami in early May 2025, South Florida’s vacation-rental market felt the full force of the motorsport’s glitz and glamour. Between May 2 and 4, the inaugural Miami Grand Prix transformed Miami Gardens—and the surrounding neighborhoods—into a hub of global tourism. Using PriceLabs data, we analyzed listing dynamics, occupancy, pricing, and vacation rental KPIs to quantify the Miami Grand Prix 2025 impact on vacation rentals.
1. Surge in Listings and Availability
While this jump in listing count may seem modest, it reflects hosts capitalizing on the heightened demand by buying an Airbnb property or temporarily converting longer-term stays into nightly rentals.
Despite the bump in supply, Miami’s average daily calendar unavailability (blocked dates for maintenance, owner use, etc.) remained minimal—under 1%—indicating that most active hosts kept their calendars open to capture the influx of potential guests.
2. Occupancy: Record-Setting Bookings
During Grand Prix weekend, Miami’s booked percentage soared to a nearly 20 percentage-point jump. Compared to the same dates in 2024, when occupancy rates hovered around 36.3%, this year’s event drove a YoY occupancy increase of 42.5 percentage points (from 36.30% to 78.83%).
The Grand Prix filled nearly four out of five available nights, underscoring the event’s power to convert casual browsers into confirmed guests.
3. Pricing Dynamics: ADR & RevPAR Soar
Compared to $360.77 in May 2024, ADR rose a more modest 5% YOY, indicating that while hosts raised rates aggressively, market appetite tempered extreme spikes.
Combining occupancy and ADR, RevPAR climbed from $210.92 pre-race to $306.33 during the Grand Prix—a 45% uplift. Versus 2024’s RevPAR of $132.96 for the same dates, this year’s event yielded a staggering 127% YOY boost.
4. Market Context: How Miami Stacks Up
While hosts saw headline figures that dazzled, how did Miami’s performance compare to the broader South Florida market?
Occupancy averaged 73.2% over the Grand Prix weekend—roughly 5% below Miami’s center-city performance (78.8%).
ADR was at $260.56, about $119 shy of central Miami’s $380.07 ADR.
RevPAR settled at $191.25, while Miami averaged $306.33, a 60% premium over surrounding areas.
Event-adjacent neighborhoods and downtown districts reaped disproportionate gains—an opportunity for hosts in peripheral markets to adjust pricing or minimum-stay rules in future years.
5. Booking Lead Times and Pickup Trends
Contrary to some major events where frantic last-minute bookings spike, the Miami Grand Prix saw a more balanced booking curve:
- Nearly 40% of May 2–4 stays were booked more than 30 days in advance, reflecting global travelers planning trips around the race.
- Roughly 15% of total reservations came within the 7 days preceding the event—solid but not the dominant driver.
Compared to the same period last year, early-bird bookings rose by 35%, while last-minute pickups inched up 10% YOY.
For future Grand Prix editions, consider layered discounting:
- Modest early-booking incentives (5–10% off 60+ days out)
- Targeted last-minute deals (up to 15% off within 7 days)
6. Revenue Impact: Dollars and Cents
Miami hosts averaged $302,049 in total nightly revenue per day over the Grand Prix weekend, compared to $160,000 in the prior year—a 90% lift in gross revenue.
Ultra-luxury listings (ADR $500+) posted the largest gains in RevPAR, while mid-tier properties ($250–$400 ADR) benefited most in occupancy. Budget listings (ADR < $200) saw occupancy rise, but limited ADR flexibility capped RevPAR growth in that segment.
Event hosts with premium-tier offerings (large homes, waterfront condos) can command outsized returns, but mid-market listings remain the workhorses that drive overall market occupancy.
7. Lessons for Hosts & Property Managers
#1 Implement rule-based pricing adjustments
Increase base prices by 20–30% for known event dates.
Set granular minimum-stay rules (e.g., 3–4 nights) during peak days to maximize RevPAR without discouraging bookings.
#2 Optimize Length-of-Stay Settings
Encourage longer stays by offering incremental discounts (e.g., 5% off for 5+ nights)—boosts RevPAR and reduces turnover costs.
Conversely, allow one or two-night stays during high-demand evenings to capture last-minute bookers and to avoid orphan gaps.
#3 Adjust Lead-Time Strategies
Use PriceLabs’ tiered lead-time rules: stronger discounts 60+ days out to lock in early commitments, smaller discounts 7–14 days before to catch planners and last-minute guests alike.
#4 Leverage Market Data
Monitor percentile pricing (25th/50th/75th) to ensure competitiveness: during the Grand Prix, Miami’s 75th-percentile rate peaked at $450, suggesting that top-tier hosts can push even higher.
Watch market pickup trends to anticipate demand surges—notably, pickup for the Miami Grand Prix began accelerating 45 days in advance.
8. Outlook: Beyond the Checkered Flag
While the Miami Grand Prix weekend delivered headline figures, its ripple effects extend far beyond three days:
- Extended Stays: Many guests combined the race with longer Florida vacations, with bookings in the surrounding 7-day window averaging 69% occupancy and $297 ADR—10% above typical May levels.
- Future Events: With Formula 1 contracts extending through 2031, the Miami GP has cemented itself as an annual driver of tourism traffic. Hosts can anticipate similar—and possibly larger—impacts as international awareness grows.
Conclusion
The 2025 Miami Grand Prix proved to be a landmark event for short-term rental hosts. Average occupancy soared to nearly 79%, ADR climbed above $380, and RevPAR more than doubled YOY—translating into close to $300,000 in nightly revenue across the market. With dynamic pricing, tailoring length-of-stay restrictions, and responding swiftly to booking-pickup patterns, hosts maximized returns during this motorsport spectacle.
