UK hotel room rates continue to decline

26th January 2009, 1:32pm

The festive season did not bring much cheer for UK hoteliers in December as room rate, occupancy and rooms yield all fell for most during the month, according to preliminary monthly figures released today by PKF Hotel Consultancy Services.

In the capital, room rate dropped from £139.33 in 2007 to £138.03 this year – a fall of 0.9% – while occupancy decreased by 1.2% on the same period last year. Overall, this meant a 2.1% decline in rooms yield from £102.07 in 2007 to £99.89 in 2008.

Year to date figures were a little more positive, with London achieving a 2.7% increase in rooms yield for the year from £114.08 in 2007 to £117.19 in 2008: this was mostly driven by a 4.6% hike in room rate.

In the regions, hoteliers felt the effects of the downturn more severely with rooms yield dropping by 11.6% in comparison to December 2007. This was a combination of a 9.4% decrease in occupancy, from 62.2% to 56.3%, and a drop in room rate from £73.20 last year to £71.42 this year.

Robert Barnard, partner for hotel consultancy services at PKF, commented: "The decreases experienced by hoteliers this month are not surprising considering the current climate.

"While in recent years UK families may have chosen to take a break over the Christmas period by staying in a hotel, or families from overseas many have chosen to travel to the UK for a holiday, this year most will have opted to stay at home and save money ahead of what is expected to be a difficult 2009."

Looking forward into 2009, "The weak pound may help bring some tourists back to the UK and therefore into hotels, but on the whole, it will be a more testing year for hoteliers than the last few and they should be continuing to prepare themselves for a downturn in business", continued Barnard.

Related Articles:

• 31 Jan 2011 - Snow disruption affects UK hoteliers, says PKF
• 10 Jan 2011 - Strong figures for London hoteliers in November, finds PKF
• 01 Nov 2010 - Strong September for hoteliers across the UK, says PKF
• 29 Sep 2010 - UK hoteliers achieve healthy August, says PKF
• 25 Aug 2010 - London hoteliers achieve strong July figures
• 21 Jun 2010 - Positive outlook for UK hoteliers in May
• 24 May 2010 - Mixed fortunes for UK hoteliers
• 26 Apr 2010 - Volcanic ash cloud puts pressure on UK hoteliers
• 01 Apr 2010 - UK hoteliers survive difficult 2009
• 22 Mar 2010 - London hoteliers achieve healthy growth
• 22 Feb 2010 - Snowfall in January affects many UK hoteliers
• 25 Jan 2010 - Hoteliers cash in on December festivities
• 26 Oct 2009 - London hoteliers continue to fill rooms
• 24 Aug 2009 - Summer holiday season worrying for hoteliers
• 29 Jun 2009 - Occupancy increases for London hoteliers, but the regions struggle
• 28 May 2009 - Regional hotels experience fall in room rates
• 20 Apr 2009 - Further falls for UK hoteliers
• 26 Mar 2009 - Tough times predicted for UK hotel industry

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