Delegates say they're optimistic – andvote Basil Fawlty among the greats

Despite 2003 being labelled one of the worst years for the hotel industry, the majority of delegates in Berlin last week were confident about the future of the sector.

A pre-conference survey of delegates by TNS found that 70% were either "positive" or "very positive" about the state of the industry. Agents were the most positive of all delegates - but the survey also revealed that 69% of attendees said they would not sell a property if they owned one in Europe, which could dampen the agents' optimism.

Some 10% of delegates said they expected revenue per available room to increase by 5% this year and, despite the recent spate of public-to-private moves within the hotel industry, 46% said they expected the publicly quoted sector to expand in the future.

French group Accor was cited as the key hotel player to look out for in the future, with Marriott International and Hilton in second and third place.

Robin Hutson's Hotel du Vin was singled out as one of the smaller players with big potential, with positive outlooks also given to De Vere and City Inns.

In terms of people, delegates rated John Willard Marriott as the greatest-ever hotelier, with Conrad Hilton and C‚sar Ritz following close behind. Interestingly, John Cleese's Basil Fawlty, the greatest teacher of how not to be a hotelier, was awarded seventh place in the attendees' list of the top 10 greatest hoteliers.