Buoyant corporate bookings boost hotels in November
Rising demand from a resurgent corporate sector helped UK hotel operators report another month of impressive growth in November, according to preliminary figures released by business advisory and accountancy firm BDO.
Rooms yield during the month rose by 6.5% year-on-year in London to £116.01 and by 8.3% in the regions to £44.52.
The rooms yield increase in the capital was driven by a 5% increase in average room rate to £138.20, and a 1.4% improvement in occupancy to 84%.
In the regions, there was a 3.7% rise in average room rate £61.41, coupled with a 4.5% improvement in occupancy to 72.5%.
Robert Barnard, partner at BDO, said: "The hotel sector's strong run continues to gather momentum.
"The data shows that operators are successfully boosting occupancy without having to resort to discounting, which suggests that underlying demand is heading in the right direction. However, this demand is currently lop-sided.
"Hotels tend to rely on corporate occupiers during the autumn, and much of the recent recovery in operator performance has been driven by increasing business confidence and spending. The meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) market appears to be rebounding after a number of years in the doldrums.
"Consumers, by contrast, are struggling with negative real wage growth and are playing a less prominent role in the sector's recent upturn. Persuading cash-strapped consumers to stay in hotels remains a challenge."
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