Despite not yet knowing who the two finalists will be, the UEFA Champions League final at Wembley Stadium in May has already caused a surge in hotel bookings for the capital.

Group occupancy levels for the night of the game are already up a staggering 93.7 per cent year-over-year, according to research from Rubicon.

Europe’s footballing elite have battled it out this season in a bid to play in the final of the continent’s premier club competition on May 28th.

Only four teams remain in the competition, with Manchester United set to take on German side Schalke, with Barcelona will take on Real Madrid on the other all-Spanish semi-final.

Whoever triumphs, hotels are revelling in the honour of being the host city for the 2011 final and have already seen the benefits with bookings for May 27th, the night before the final, showing a rise in committed occupancy of 67.8 per cent compared to last year.

“It seems the football fans are making the most of their trip to London by arriving on the Friday evening and staying through to the Sunday after the final as the rise in committed hotel occupancy is up over the entire weekend,” explained Andy Storey, vice president of enterprise solutions for Rubicon, a Travelclick company.

“London hoteliers are reaping the benefits of having the major sporting final in their city with rates up 30.1 per cent on the same time last year.

“This should give them an idea of what they might expect ahead of next year’s Olympics.”

Committed occupancy over the weekend is showing an increase in both the Friday and Saturday nights with rises of 67.8 per cent and 40.2 per cent respectively.

As expected, occupancy is highest for the night of the final itself, at 69.8 per cent and this is certain to increase further as the date draws closer and the finalists are revealed.

City.Mobi

Also in Europe today, City.Mobi is celebrating the success of its new guide to London. 

City.Mobi offers the most comprehensive mobile travel guides available, with over 800 cities in 200 countries listed. Each is developed by the City.Mobi team to combine into a single global travel directory.

However, each city retains its own mobile identity via a dedicated domain. Already on offer are Brussels.Mobi, Paris.Mobi, Sanfrancisco.Mobi and Sydney.Mobi.

London.Mobi is the latest in this illustrious line up, offering click to call functionality – which means no scribbling down telephone numbers.

Most entries are also linked to websites where users can quickly access more detailed information if needed.

Other key features include information on accommodation, restaurants, attractions, entertainment, nightlife, shopping, and transport.

City.Mobi guides include user reviews and traveller utilities such as a translation guide, currency converter, news and local weather guide.