Hotels return to business as usual in September
Hotels across the UK saw a return to normal business patterns in September, following a summer impacted by the Olympics, according to preliminary figures released by PKF Hotel Consultancy Services.
Hotels in London recorded a 0.7% decline in rooms yield to £124.38, compared with £125.31 in September 2011. Occupancy in the capital increased by 0.8 percentage points from 87.8% to 88.6%, while room rate fell by 1.5% to £140.46 from £142.63 a year ago.
In the regions, rooms yield reduced by 1.3% from £50.96 to £50.32. Room rate rose by 0.6% from £63.91 to £64.29 and occupancy fell by 1.4 percentage points to 78.3%, compared with 79.7% this time last year.
Govinda Singh, director for hotel and hospitality consultancy services at PKF, commented: "After an especially challenging July and a spectacularly successful August, hotels across the country experienced something approaching a return to normality during September.
"It's always disappointing to see a decline in rooms yield but the reduction has been well managed and the absolute levels of both room rate and occupancy remain healthy, given the prevailing economic environment.
"As expected, we're not seeing any evidence of a post-Olympic hangover in the London hotel sector, and the city's hotel operators will be cautiously optimistic about the rest of the year.
"In the regions, hotels remain reliant on the meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions market, and that doesn't appear to be showing any signs of improving in the short term. Regional operators are likely to experience a challenging autumn, but they've got the expertise and experience to manage the pressures that they're facing."
Strong results for London and regional hotels in April >>
Olympics boost for hotel occupancy and rates >>
Mixed results for Olympic hotel occupancies and room rates >>
By Janet Harmer
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