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London hoteliers achieved healthy growth in February while the regions posted healthier occupancy rates and moved towards recovery, according to preliminary monthly figures released today by PKF Hotel Consultancy Services.

In London, room rate was up 2.7% on the same period last year from £104.23 to £107.01. Occupancy increased by 6.4% from 73.8% in 2009 to 78.6% in 2010. The combination meant rooms yield increased 9.2% from 76.97% to 84.08%.

In the regions, room rate still suffered as hoteliers reduced rates in a continued attempt to draw in visitors. Room rate was down 6.6% from £63.24 to £59.07, but occupancy increased by a healthy 4.0% to 65.2%. Overall, rooms yield was down 2.8% from £39.61 in 2009 to £38.49 in 2010.

Edinburgh and Cardiff benefitted from the Six Nations fixtures held in the two cities in February. Room rate in Cardiff was up 3.6% on the same time last year, from £75.64 to £78.38, occupancy rose 7.3% and rooms yield increased by 11.2% from £52.23 to £58.07.

In Edinburgh, room rate was down, but only by 1.1% to £76.33. Occupancy was up 5.2% from 66.8% to 70.3% and rooms yield therefore increased 4.0% to 53.67%, compared to 51.59% last February.

Robert Barnard, partner for Hotel Consultancy Services at PKF, commented, “2010 is going to be a year of recovery rather than growth for the hotel industry across the UK.

“Due to its global presence, London is an exception and positive figures for the capital suggest it has already bounced back. Hoteliers are already experiencing growth and I expect this to continue steadily over the year.

“Meanwhile, the regions will take the year to get back on track following the slowdown.”

Final Data for January 2010

Definition of the key terms used in the surveys table are given below:

Room occupancy: the ratio of total occupied rooms to total available rooms

Average achieved room rate (AARR): rooms revenue divided by the total number of guest rooms occupied during the year.

Rooms yield: room occupancy multiplied by the average achieved room rate (also known as RevPar).

For further information visit www.pkf.co.uk

The large amounts of snowfall that fell on many parts of the country in January affected many UK hoteliers both positively and negatively, according to preliminary monthly figures for January released today by PKF Hotel Consultancy Services.

The capital was largely unaffected by the snow, although some incoming business travellers will have had their plans altered due to intermittent London airport closures, and hoteliers achieved fairly robust growth over the month. Room rate increased by 4.1% from £110.26 last year to £114.80 this year, room occupancy increased 4.9% from 67.5% last year to 70.9% this year. Overall, rooms yield increased by a solid 9.2% to £81.38.

In the regions, the picture was different as snowfall affected many parts and this had both a positive and negative impact on occupancy levels. Overall occupancy levels showed a 1.4% increase on the same time last year, from 55.1% to 55.9%. Room rate continued to suffer however, down 6.4% to £65.26 and this brought rooms yield down by 5.1% to £36.48.

Leeds, Liverpool and Birmingham were cities whose hoteliers were affected negatively by the snow. In Leeds, occupancy was down 0.5% compared to the same time last year, to 62.3% with rooms yield down 9.1% to £36.87; Liverpool occupancy dropped 0.1% to 53.2% and Birmingham occupancy fell by 3.7% to 51.7%.

Edinburgh, Cardiff and Manchester were affected positively by the snow and all increased their occupancy levels in January. Room occupancy in Edinburgh increased by 3.4% to 55.6%; in Cardiff the increase was 2.8% to 58.9%; while in Manchester the increase was 8.9% to 66.3%, although this is unlikely to be entirely down to last minute snow bookings.

Robert Barnard, partner for Hotel Consultancy Services at PKF, commented, “The snow caused a fair amount of havoc for those needing to travel over January and this worked out negatively for hoteliers in some parts of the country. On the flip side, the need for a last minute bed for those stranded by the same weather, worked out positively for other hotel owners.

“As we look forward to Spring so do thoughts of summer holidays and this could bode well for UK hotels in 2010. Although the country is officially out of recession, economic difficulties are still affecting many UK families and this, coupled with the weakness of the pound, could mean that many decide to holiday in the UK this year.”