London and regional UK revenue gap doubles
The total revenue achieved by London hotels is now 35% above properties in the UK regions, compared to a 16% differential in 2000, according to a new study from hospitality intelligence company HotStats.
Benchmarking Beyond RevPAR, compiled from a consistent sample of the performance of nearly 45,000 hotel bedrooms across the UK over a 15-year period, revealed that total revenue levels at the capital's hotels has increased by 25.3%, compared to an increase of 7.6% for regional UK hotels.
The faster growth in turnover achieved by London hotels is explained by the elevated position of the city as a global tourist destination, which has seen a 70% growth in visitors between 2000 and 2015 to 31.5 million.
Hotels in the capital also sustained revenue and occupancy levels far better than their regional counterparts during the recent recession.
The performance gap between London and the regions was at its widest in 2012 at £42.99. By 2015 the trevpar (total revenue per available room) gap had reduced to £37.14 with London hotels recording a rate of £143.04, compared to £105.90 at regional hotels.
London hoteliers have not always outpaced their provincial colleagues. In 2003, when hotels in the capital were hit by multiple global incidents, including 9/11, SARS and the Iraq War, regional trevPAR was £5.35 ahead of London.
Pablo Alonso, chief executive of HotStats, said:"Trevpar performance at hotels in London has plateaued slightly in the last 12 months. Whilst the number of visitors to the capital continues to grow, the pace of this demand increase is now being matched, if not exceeded, by growth in supply.
"This has enabled provincial hoteliers to close the gap on London and they continue to outpace the growth at hotels in the capital in 2016."
Benchmarking Beyond RevPAR is available to download for free at www.hotstats.com.
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