TripAdvisor has announced the results of its latest Industry Index, the largest hotel survey in the world.

With more than 25,000 responses from accommodation owners around the globe, the survey noted economic optimism is rising among the accommodation industry in the UK.

Accommodation owners have become more positive during the first half of 2012 with 27 per cent of respondents stating that they believe the economy will improve during the remainder of the year.

This demonstrates that UK accommodations have become 30 per cent more optimistic since TripAdvisor’s Industry Index in December 2011, when only 19 per cent felt the economy would improve in 2012.

Industry Optimism

Seventy-nine percent of respondents describe their business as profitable or very profitable in the past six months, making UK accommodations the third most profitable across Europe, behind Turkey and Germany.

The profitability outlook is encouraging; compared with the same period last year, approximately one in four accommodations said they have increased their room rates for July and August and 23 per cent plan to increase their room rates ahead of the Autumn season.

Jubilympics

Despite economic optimism and strong profitability, it seems Britain’s promised influx of visitors this July and August is not expected to have the bumper effect on UK accommodation businesses many owners were hoping for.

When asked if Britain’s time on the world stage this summer would have any lasting effect on business, over half of respondents (58 per cent) stated it would have no effect.

A third of respondents (35 per cent) were more positive, saying there would be either a short-term or long-term positive effect.

Euro Crisis

The Euro crisis has had a devastating effect on the economies of many countries in continental Europe, but UK hospitality businesses are also feeling the crunch.

Overall, 87 per cent of respondents believe the Euro debt crisis will have an impact on their businesses over the next six months.

Of those accommodation owners that believe their businesses will be affected, 29 per cent feel that the impact will be major.

“The TripAdvisor Industry Index underscores the current global economic climate, as hoteliers in North America, Asia-Pacific and Latin America are all approximately twice as likely to report being profitable in the last six months than hoteliers in the EMEA region,” said Christine Petersen, president, TripAdvisor for Business.

“This trend is also reflected in the global economic outlook; over one quarter of respondents from the EMEA region think that the economy will deteriorate, making them less optimistic than any other region.”

For more data from the TripAdvisor Industry Index, please download the report here.