Hotel prices soar ahead of Rugby World Cup

Hotel room prices in host cities for the Rugby World Cup have increased on every match night in every city, at an average of £261 for a hotel stay, according to the latest figures from Trivago. This represents a 184% increase from the average of £92 in 2014. Cardiff has enjoyed the largest price increases, with prices peaking at an average of £1018 (1095% increase) for the Quarter Final on 17 October. Cardiff, Brighton and London most expensive Cardiff is the most expensive city for a hotel stay during the 2015 Rugby World Cup, with prices peaking at an average of £1018 for the Quarter Final on 17 October – 1095 per cent above the 2014 average of £85 per night. The next five most expensive matches will all take place in Cardiff, including France vs Ireland on 11 October (988% increase to £927 for an overnight stay), the Quarter Final on 18 October (640% increase to £630) and Ireland vs Canada on 19 September (512% increase to £521). After Cardiff, the next most expensive match cities are Brighton and London. An overnight stay in Brighton will cost an average of £376 for Russia vs Japan on 19 September – 363% above the 2014 average of £107 per night. London’s most expensive matches are, unsurprisingly, the final on 31 October and the home match of England vs Australia on 3 October. A hotel on the night of the final will cost an average of £334 (up 103% from £165 in 2014), while the night of England vs Australia will cost £332 (up 101%). Birmingham, Leeds and Leicester cheapest Australia vs Uruguay in Birmingham on 27 September is the cheapest match for a hotel stay, at an average of £98 (26% increase from £78 in 2014). This is followed by Scotland vs USA in Leeds also on 27 September (15% increase to £100). Although the three matches in Leicester are relatively cheap for a hotel stay (ranging from £105 to £126), the average price per night during 2014 was £65, meaning the city has hiked prices by 62% to 95%. London, on the other hand, has the lowest price increases (some match nights have only increased by 9% compared with last year). Newcastle lowest hotel availability; Leeds highest Hotel availability is low in Cardiff for all match dates, ranging from 1-28% availability remaining. Newcastle, however, has the lowest hotel availability, with 0% remaining for South Africa vs Scotland on 3 October and 1% availability for New Zealand vs Tonga on 9 October. Leeds has the highest hotel availability rate for Scotland vs USA on 27 September, with 62% availability remaining. This is followed by Australia vs Uruguay in Birmingham also on 27 September, with 57% availability remaining. Brighton also has 56% and 50% availability remaining for the matches on 19 and 20 September. Denise Bartlett, head of UK public relations for Trivago, said: “The hotel price increases in Cardiff are the most extreme we have ever reported for an event in the UK. For the World Cup in Brazil last year, hotel prices peaked at an average of £328, with a maximum increase of 243%. "The average in Cardiff for all match nights is £574, which is 140% more expensive than a night in London during the Rugby World Cup (average of £240), despite London being the UK’s most expensive city for a hotel stay."