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Corporate travel provided a welcome boost to hotels in London and the regions in October, against a backdrop of wider economic stability.
The data, released by advisory and accountancy firm BDO, showed a 1.7% increase in room rate to £124.63 in October in London hotels, while occupancy grew by 1.1% to 88.1%. This produced a rooms yield increase of 2.8% to £109.85.
Regional hotels saw a 6% increase in room rate to £59.76, while occupancy increased by 4.3% year-on-year to 80.4%. As a result, the regions saw rooms yield hit double digit growth up 10.5%.
BDO said that these results were down to October being a prime time for corporate travel, with conferences and corporate events in “full-swing”. It said increased corporate travel reflects growth in the wider economy as business confidence returns and attendance for events is on the up.
Robert Barnard, partner at BDO LLP, said: “We’ve seen vast improvements in the UK economy over the last year, as businesses held momentum for the first time in years. Confidence is high and is reflected by the increase in conference attendance and events – which in turn, has driven the growth in the hotels sector.
“Since the beginning of 2014, a number of environmental and economic factors have created the perfect setting for UK hotels to thrive – from the Glasgow Commonwealth Games, to the warm summer and the continued rise of the ‘staycation’. This is good news for hoteliers in London and the regions and should provide a strong foundation to build on in the coming year.”
Image courtesy of VisitEngland/Diana Jarvis
