London hotels continued to deliver a
          record-breaking   performance in August according to the
          preliminary figures released today by PKF hotel consultancy
          services while regional hotels delivered solid year on year
          growth.

          Average daily rates in the capital were the best since 2000
          at £100.92,  an increase of 8.1% on 2005. Room occupancy was
          up 26.9%  on 2005 at 83.5% although it should be remembered
          that London hotels saw significant cancellations in bookings
          in August last year after the second July terrorist alert.
          However,  the 37.2% increase in daily rooms yield to £84.22,
          the highest figure recorded since the Millennium, indicates
          that the London hotel market is enjoying one of its best ever
          years.

 

          Regional hoteliers as a whole continued to enjoy solid growth
          in August   with average room rate up 3.2%  to £66.17,
          occupancy up 1.6% to 75.3%, and daily rooms yield up 4.9% to
          £49.85 but performance varied considerably from city to city.
          While   major   business-hub   cities   such as Birmingham,
          Manchester and Leeds suffered the traditional seasonal dip as
          business visitors took their summer holidays, leisure and
          culture destinations such as Cardiff and Edinburgh had a good
          month.  For example,  Edinburgh hotels were 90.4% full with
          Festival visitors and both room rate and rooms yield figures
          outshone London’s at £109.26 and £98.81 respectively.

 

          Robert Barnard,  partner for hotel consultancy services at
          PKF,  said:  “While the August figures indicate that the UK
          hotel market as a whole continues to enjoy a good year, the
          continuing boom for London hotels is a welcome payback for
          weathering the wars, pestilences and terrorist threats of the
          last   few   years.  The combination of London hoteliers’
          resilience,  resourcefulness   and improving quality with
          better-than-anticipated economic growth is driving up demand
          in virtually every market segment.

 

          “In the regions, August is the month where the dichotomy of
          fortune between business and leisure locations is most
          clearly pronounced.  The continuing good weather boosted the
          number of visitors to holiday destination cities and resorts
          while   the   predominantly   business destinations largely
          experienced   seasonal   downturns.  The underlying themes,
          though,  are still those of innate market strength and a
          better product offering for the consumer.”
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