ED Consulting Hotel Price Index 2010

The Hotel Price Index TM

Review of global hotel prices: 2010

Introduction
The Hotels.com Hotel Price IndexTM (HPI®) is a regular survey The international scale of Hotels.com (in terms of both
of hotel prices in major destinations across the world. The customers and destinations) makes the Hotel Price Index
HPI is based on bookings made on Hotels.com and prices one of the most comprehensive benchmarks available, as
shown are those actually paid by customers (rather than it incorporates both chain and independent hotels, as well
advertised rates) in 2010. as options such as self-catering and bed and breakfast
properties.
Now in its seventh year, the HPI® is respected as the
definitive report on hotel prices paid around the world and
increasingly used as a reference tool by media, analysts,
tourism bodies and academics.

• The HPITM tracks the real prices paid per room by
Hotels.com customers around the world using a
weighted average based on the number of rooms sold in
each of the markets that Hotels.com operates in.

• Approximately 110,000 properties in more than 18,000
global locations make up the sample set of hotels from
which prices are taken.

Foreword
David Roche
President of Hotels.com

On the rebound?
Reading our seventh annual Hotel Price Index reminded me
of a joke about two economists meeting at a conference.

First economist: “How’s your wife?” First, business travel, and the associated convention trade,
is back. This is reflected in higher occupancy levels for the
Second economist: “Relative to what?”
major business centres and higher star rating hotels. By
After the worst trading conditions most in the market had October last year, occupancy in London was running at
seen, our 2010 story shows a market in recovery, and allows over 90%, with Barcelona, Paris and Amsterdam all running
us, for now, to call the bottom of it at around the turn of at over 80% (TRI Hospitality Consulting). The HPI shows
2009. Such pronouncements are all relative. The average the increase in prices from these higher occupancy rates
price of a hotel night grew by 2% globally last year. However, in most major business destinations – from the booming
since the fall was so prolonged and steep, guests were still Asian markets of Singapore and Shanghai to London and
roughly paying what they would have done six or seven New York. Even Las Vegas, a watchword for knockdown
years ago. Whilst the high volume of promotions we saw in prices in the recession, saw a significant rise in prices as the
the depth of the crisis has dried up somewhat, there are still convention business returned.
deals to be had.
Second, although the return of the business traveller
Averages tend to mislead. Any recovery story would ring accounts for the biggest swing in occupancy, and therefore
hollow in say Ireland or Spain, where local economic pricing, this isn’t just a business story. Travel in general
problems have spilled over into the hotel market. Meanwhile, staged something of a recovery. International arrivals
we can see much stronger recovery in global business grew over 5% in 2010, having fallen by 4% the previous
centres, and both Asian and luxury markets look buoyant, year (WTO). Those who are travelling are spending more.
despite significant increases in capacity. Viewed from Occupancy in luxury properties in the US, for example, is
Hotels.com – as good a vantage point as any given the running between ten and fifteen points higher than in the
breadth of our supply and sales - the story of 2010, and lower star categories. Although we’ve once again compiled a
likely 2011, has four key themes. list of the cheapest places for a luxury stay, it’s a shorter one
than it would have been eighteen months ago.

The Hotel Price Index Review of hotel prices in 2010 1

So if the occupancy story has signs of strength, why aren’t So overall, 2010 I think is the story of a recovery, even if it
prices recovering more strongly? is one that had, and is likely to continue having, particular
twists and turns. The pages of this report contain the usual
Here, the previous point about misleading averages is
stories for each destination, from World Cups to Icelandic
worth remembering – in many places in the survey, they
volcanoes, and their impact on the price of a hotel. One thing
are, albeit from low bases. The other force acting on prices
is for certain. As we pass our 20th anniversary in 2011, the
is supply, which has continued to expand, if a touch more
team at Hotels.com is more determined than ever to offer
selectively, through the downturn. London is in the process
consumers great deals and all the information they need to
of adding 12,000 rooms in the run up to the 2012 Olympics,
book the right hotel.
with a particular focus on the luxury sector. Paris expects a
70% increase in luxury hotel capacity in the next two years
(Smith Travel Research). STR also reported 310 hotels under
construction in Europe at the mid-point of our survey. This
trend is more than mirrored in the faster growing Asian
and Latin American markets. So, although financing has
undoubtedly been tighter, building has continued, and may
well continue to act as a brake on prices in the future.

Lastly, promotions, whilst still widespread, have become
more selective. The pricing trends in this report still reflect
hoteliers’ use of attractive discounts to attract consumers
who have grown used to discounting across many shopping
categories. This likely permanent change in consumers’
mindsets means that promotions and deals are unlikely to
dry up, and will again form some sort of bulwark against
trends that would otherwise see faster rises in the price of a
hotel.

2 The Hotel Price Index Review of hotel prices in 2010

Contents

1. Global price changes in 2010
Overall

By region

2. Global city destinations
Prices across the world’s cities
Highest price rises and falls

3. Price changes by country
4. Focus on the UK
5. Prices paid at home and away
6. Where to go for £100 a night
7. Average room prices by star rating
8. Luxury for less
9. Travel habits
Top UK destinations for UK travellers
Top overseas destinations for UK travellers
Top UK destinations for travellers from overseas


In the HPI report, we focus on two main sources of data: The report largely compares prices paid in 2010 with prices
paid in 2009.
The first section (chapter 1) shows the global Hotel Price
Index for 2010. The second section (chapters 2-9) shows hotel prices
across the world as paid by UK travellers in Pounds Sterling.
The Index is compiled from all relevant transactions on
This shows the changes in real prices paid by consumers,
Hotels.com, in local currency, weighted to reflect the size of
reflecting both movements in exchange rates and hotel
each market. By representing hotel price movements in an
pricing.
index, Hotels.com can illustrate the actual price movements
as felt by consumers without foreign exchange fluctuations
distorting the picture.

The Index was started in 2004 at a benchmark of 100, and
includes all bookings across all star ratings.


1. Global price changes in 2010
The average price of a hotel room around the world rose 2% European prices stay flat in 2010
in 2010 but was still only at the level it was in 2004 when the
Hotels.com Hotel Price Index was launched. • Prices paid by travellers for hotel rooms in Europe stayed
flat compared to 2009.
The small rise took the average cost of a room to 100 on the
Index, the level it was six years ago. • Prices had fallen for seven consecutive quarters
going into 2010 so the stabilisation during the year will
Prices remained flat in Europe, rose just 1% in Latin America be welcomed by hoteliers.
and the Caribbean and fell by 2% in Asia. However, the
average was boosted by a 2% rise in North America. • The Hotel Price Index for Europe stood at 99 at the end
of 2010, flat from the previous year. That means that the
average cost of a room in Europe is now 1% less than it
was in 2004 when the Hotel Price Index was launched
and 20% lower than when the average European price
peaked in Q2 2007.

Figure 1 HPI quarterly breakdown for Q1 2004 to Q4 2010 globally

130

120
Index Points

110

100

90

80
Q1 04
Q2 04
Q3 04
Q4 04
Q1 05
Q2 05
Q3 05
Q4 05
Q1 06
Q2 06
Q3 06
Q4 06
Q1 07
Q2 07
Q3 07
Q4 07
Q1 08
Q2 08
Q3 08
Q4 08
Q1 09
Q2 09
Q3 09
Q4 09
Q1 10
Q2 10
Q3 10
Q4 10


Figure 2 HPI by quarter, by region, Europe, Asia - Pacific, North America, Latin America and
Caribbean 2004 - 2010
180 Asia - Pacific

Caribbean
160

Europe
Index Points

140
Latin
America
120
North
America
100

80
Q1 04

Q3 04
Q4 04
Q1 05
Q2 05
Q3 05
Q4 05
Q1 06
Q2 06
Q3 06
Q4 06
Q1 07
Q2 07
Q3 07
Q4 07
Q1 08
Q2 08
Q3 08
Q4 08
Q1 09
Q2 09
Q3 09
Q4 09
Q1 10
Q2 10
Q3 10
Q4 10
Q2 04

North America shows small increase • Prices for the Caribbean rose by 1% year-on-year.
The stabilisation came after two years of successive
• Prices paid by travellers for hotel rooms in North America falls in 2008 and 2009. At the end of 2010, the HPI for
(the US and Canada) rose 2% in 2010. The North the Caribbean stood at 114 points, still 16 points down
American HPI stood at 98 at the end of year. on its 2007 peak.
• The year started with the ninth consecutive quarterly • Prices across Latin America also rose by 1% taking its
fall of 2% in the first quarter but then picked up with HPI to 111, still 22 points short of its 2007 high.
increases of 3%, 4% and 3% respectively in the second,
third and fourth quarters. Stronger demand from both
leisure and business travellers seems to have Asia sees overall price falls despite growth
emboldened hoteliers to raise rates.
in Chinese economy
• Despite the small rises, room rates were still 2% lower
• Average prices paid for hotel rooms in Asia - Pacific fell
than when the HPI was started in 2004.
2% during 2010.


• However, the Hotel Price Index for Asia - Pacific in 2010 North America
stood at 115, 15% higher than when the HPI was
launched in 2004. This shows prices overall have
increased during the period from 2004 to 2010.

• The Index is back to Q3 2009 levels but the region now
exhibits a very varying landscape. For example, Thailand
suffered from political unrest and having a relatively large
supply base; Japan faced challenges in the continued
slow domestic economy and a strong currency; Singapore
on the other hand recorded significant increases thanks to
the strong bounce back of corporate travellers and new
tourist attractions and Shanghai price points were boosted
by the successful World Expo.

China
When Is A Deal Really A Deal
The closer the 2010 HPI is to its 2004 starting point of 100
the better the value. North America offered outstanding
value with average prices less than they were six years
ago, with the HPI standing at 98. This was despite an
overall 2% increase, fuelled by rising occupancy levels,
especially in more upscale hotels, and shrinking discounts.
However, even though Asia saw overall price falls of 2%,
there was less value to be had compared to 2004 with the
2010 HPI 15% higher.
Travellers looking for good deals should avoid booking
at peak times if at all possible and be aware of currency
fluctuations.


2. Price changes in global city
destinations
The following sections reflect the real Pound Sterling (£) A World Cup double whammy
prices paid by travellers from the UK during 2010 –
compared to prices paid in Pound Sterling a year before. England’s disappointing early exit from the 2010 World Cup
tournament in South Africa wasn’t the only thing travellers
UK travellers faced a tough year in 2010 with price rises in had to contend with in 2010. There were big price rises in
many of their favourite destinations. This could in part be Cape Town to £122 (28%) where many England fans were
explained by the diminishing value of Sterling but it was also based, and in Johannesburg to £120 (7%) as demand
due to hoteliers raising rates and offering fewer discounts. soared.
Price changes also seemed to reflect the volatile state of the The World Cup effect is something for fans to be aware
world economy with cities in struggling western countries of – not least for the 2022 competition in Qatar, with Doha
seeing falls but fast-developing nations such as Brazil, China already one of the most expensive cities at £169 after a
and India all witnessing double-digit percentage increases. 5% rise. Moscow, a host city for the 2018 tournament, also
proved costly at £149.

Middle Eastern promise
The oil-rich Middle East had two cities (Muscat and Doha)
Muscat
in the top three most expensive destinations, reflecting both
the small number of hotel rooms and the strength of demand
for premium accommodation from both business and leisure
travellers.

Despite economic problems, Dubai was also in the top 20 at
£120 a night on average, finishing the year with just a 1% fall
in prices year on year. This was largely fuelled by hotels at
the top end of the market. Another Emirate, Abu Dhabi, also
featured in the most expensive list despite prices falling a
huge 27% to average £116 a night.


America still appeals despite price rises Miami saw a 14% increase to £119, a trend reflected by other
Florida destinations such as Orlando at £63 after an 18%
Leisure and business travellers still flocked to the US despite jump.
having to contend with big price increases in some of their
favourite destinations as the Pound struggled against the Another popular destination, Las Vegas, registered an
Dollar as the year developed. average hotel price of £71 - a 20% hike. Overall though,
prices were still lower than 2004, providing some great value
New York was one of the most expensive cities in the world options. The flat oil price also helped keep demand for hotels
for UK visitors after a 12% rise took the average hotel price to healthy as it made road trips more affordable.
£166, and Washington DC saw a similar jump to £132.

Figure 3 Growth in average UK salary compared to HPI 2004 - 2010
20

15 Seven years of value for
UK travellers
% Growth Rate

10
UK travellers could get more value for
5 money when booking hotel rooms in
2010 than they did seven years before
0 when the HPI launched. Average
salaries have jumped 19% since 2004
-5 – yet average hotel prices are still at
the same level.
2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

HPI Index % Difference: 2004 - 2010 Average UK Salary Growth Rate: 2004 - 2010 (ONS)


A mixed picture for Europe Figure 4 Average hotel prices in 2010 compared to 2009
Destination Average Average % Change
Monte Carlo became the most expensive European city at
price per price per year on
£170 after the average hotel price took a 9% leap year on room room year
year, followed by Geneva at £152 per night (up 7%). There per night per night
were similar rises for Paris (up 8%) and Amsterdam (up 9%). 2009 2010
Rooms in Germany’s financial centre of Frankfurt hit £102 Muscat £217 £185 -15%

on average per night (up 14%), indicating a high corporate Monte Carlo £156 £170 9%
demand to do business there. Doha £160 £169 5%

However, the economic uncertainty in some Eurozone New York £148 £166 12%

nations was reflected by price falls in Dublin (down 7%) and Maui £154 £163 6%
Athens (down 3%). Geneva £142 £152 7%

Eastern European cities also saw price drops with Zagreb Moscow £148 £149 1%
(down 20%), Sofia (down 19%), Bucharest (down 13%), Valletta £126 £143 14%
Tallinn (down 11%) and Budapest (down 8%). Moscow was Bergen £111 £142 29%
one of the places to buck the trend with a 1% rise to average
Tel Aviv £119 £139 16%
£149 per night.
Rio De Janeiro £108 £139 28%
There were some big rises in up-and-coming destinations
Washington £117 £132 12%
in the list of the world’s most expensive places. Prices in the
Venice £130 £127 -3%
Maltese capital of Valletta went up by 14% and by 16% in Tel
Nairobi £107 £126 18%
Aviv. The Norwegian city of Bergen experienced a 29% rise,
as leisure travellers came back after the recession of 2009 Singapore £97 £123 26%

pushing up prices. Cape Town £96 £122 28%

Paris £112 £121 8%

Dubai £122 £120 -1%

Johannesburg £112 £120 7%

Miami £104 £119 14%


Destination Average Average % Change Destination Average Average % Change
price per price per year on price per price per year on
room room year room room year
per night per night per night per night
2009 2010 2009 2010
Sao Paulo £84 £118 41% Cancun £80 £98 21%

Abu Dhabi £159 £116 -27% Istanbul £93 £95 3%

LONDON £104 £114 10% Toronto £82 £94 15%

Oslo £105 £114 9% Vienna £87 £94 8%

Rome £110 £114 4% New Orleans £80 £93 17%

Stockholm £100 £113 13% Shanghai £69 £91 33%

Milan £97 £108 12% Athens £94 £91 -3%

Mumbai £103 £106 4% Buenos Aires £79 £90 14%

Amsterdam £97 £106 9% Brussels £86 £89 4%

Jerusalem £122 £105 -14% Melbourne £78 £87 11%

Vancouver £96 £105 9% Guangzhou £78 £86 11%

Los Angeles £100 £104 4% Marrakech £80 £74 -7%

Tokyo £106 £104 -3% Reykjavik £76 £72 -6%

Honolulu £96 £103 8% Las Vegas £59 £71 20%

Hong Kong £81 £103 27% Warsaw £66 £70 5%

Copenhagen £111 £103 -7% Dublin £73 £68 -7%

Sydney £85 £102 21% Prague £65 £67 3%

Chicago £101 £102 2% Budapest £70 £65 -8%

Cairo £108 £102 -5% Orlando £54 £63 18%

Frankfurt £89 £102 14% Bangkok £60 £58 -3%

San Francisco £89 £99 11% Tallinn £60 £54 -11%


Figure 5 The biggest percentage price rises in 2010 compared Cape Town
with 2009
room room year
per night per night
2009 2010
Sao Paulo £84 £118 41%

Shanghai £69 £91 33%

Biarritz £96 £128 33%

Bergen £111 £142 29%

Cape Town £96 £122 28%

Rio de Janeiro £108 £139 28%

Hong Kong £81 £103 27%

Sydney £85 £102 21% average room rates, largely as a result of the strong
Brazilian currency and booming economy. These factors
Cancun £80 £98 21%
were also reflected in China with Hong Kong witnessing
Colombo £73 £88 21%
a 27% rise and Shanghai a 33% increase.
Jaipur £52 £62 21%
• Las Vegas, synonymous with knockdown prices during
Las Vegas £59 £71 20%
the recession saw a 20% price rise as the convention
Anaheim £66 £79 19%
business returned.

• The heaviest rises year-on-year for UK travellers came • A hotel room in Jaipur on the Golden Triangle tourist
in the non-Euro destinations. Hotel rates served as route surged 21% in price to average £62 a night and
a good barometer of the growing importance and the average rate in Cancun leapt by a similar amount
development of cities in rapidly-developing countries. benefitting from new luxury hotels and British Airways
launching a direct flight to the resort.
• Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo in Brazil saw
staggering increases of 28% and 41% respectively in


50%

40%

30%

20%
Rio de Janeiro

Hong Kong
Cape Town

Las Vegas
Sao Paulo

Shanghai

Colombo
10%

Anaheim
Cancun
Sydney
Biarritz

Bergen

Jaipur
0%

Muscat

Casablanca

Leipzig

Kiev

Sofia

Zagreb

Phnom Penh

Detroit

Chennai

Osaka

Abu Dhabi
-10%

-20%

-30%
Figure 6 The biggest percentage price rises and falls in 2010 compared with 2009

Figure 7 The biggest percentage price falls in 2010
compared with 2009 price per price per year on
Destination Average Average % Change room room year
price per price per year on per night per night
room room year 2009 2010
per night per night Kiev £119 £99 -17%
2009 2010
Leipzig £70 £58 -17%
Abu Dhabi £159 £116 -27%
Casablanca £93 £78 -16%
Osaka £93 £69 -26%
Muscat £217 £185 -15%
Chennai £105 £78 -25%

Detroit £78 £60 -23% • Abu Dhabi was the city in which prices paid by UK
Phnom Penh £67 £52 -22% travellers fell furthest, according to the Hotels.com Hotel
Zagreb £103 £82 -20% Price Index. The average price for a room in the Emirate
Sofia £78 £64 -19% plunged by nearly a third (down 27%) to £116 over the


course of the year. This was fuelled by a combination of
growth in the number of rooms, as new hotels opened,
and a drop in the number of corporate travellers visiting,
due to the economic downturn.

• Eastern European cities saw big falls, offering excellent
value for UK travellers. Zagreb, where prices fell 20%,
Sofia 19%, Kiev 17% and Leipzig 17%, all featured in the Toronto £94 15%
top ten list of biggest fallers. San Francisco £99 11% New York £166 12%
Las Vegas £71 20%
Los Angeles £104 4%

Buenos Aires £90 14%


Global hotel price changes
2009 - 2010

Moscow £149 1%
Dublin £68 7% London £114 10%

Geneva £152 7%
Paris £121 8%

Monte Carlo £170 9% Milan £108 12%
Beirut £140 13% Tokyo £104 3%
Marrakech £74 7%
Shanghai £91 33%
Doha £169 5% Dubai £120 1%
Hong Kong £103 27%
Muscat £185 15%
Mumbai £106 4%
Bangkok £58 3%

Singapore £123 26%

Rio De Janeiro £139 28%
Johannesburg £120 7%

Sydney £102 21%
Cape Town £122 28%
Melbourne £87 11%


3. Price changes by country
Prices rose in more than three quarters of popular countries At the other end of the scale, Morocco was the biggest faller
favoured by UK travellers, albeit from a low level in 2009. (down 10%) and Iceland was also badly hit (down 6%), largely
as a result of the volcanic ash cloud in the early part of the
Russia retained its place as the most expensive country for
year.
UK visitors with average room rates reaching £132, followed
closely by Switzerland (£131) and Brazil (£129) which saw a Eastern Europe again offered good value with Poland the
24% leap in prices fuelled by high demand and a strong local cheapest country for UK travellers with rooms averaging £64 a
currency, a possible shape of things to come for football night, Hungary at £65 and Czech Republic at £67.
supporters travelling to the next World Cup in 2014.
The most expensive Eurozone country was Italy where the
The biggest percentage price rise of 26% happened average room rate rose 3% to £107. France on £101 (up 3%)
in Singapore, partially on the back of new luxury hotel pipped the Netherlands on £99 (up 6%). Ireland was the
developments. There was a 21% rise in the average hotel cheapest Eurozone country for UK travellers at £69 (down 4%).
price in China, reflecting its economy’s phenomenal growth,
and in South Africa, largely as a result of the World Cup, with
Moscow
average room prices hitting £118.

Australia experienced an 18% jump in the average room
price, partly due to its strong currency, but hotels still offered
good value at £95. There was a similar picture in New
Zealand with a 13% rise, but the average room price was still
just £65.

North America saw increases in the US where the average
room rate rose 4% to £105 and in Canada where the average
rate rose 10% to £100. Further south, there were also rises in
Mexico to £94 (up 6%) and in Argentina £91 (up 10%).


However, Switzerland retained its place as the most Destination Average Average % Change
expensive European nation for a hotel room at £131 a night price per price per year on
room room year
(up 6%), followed by Norway at £120 (up 12%) and Croatia at
per night per night
£115. 2009 2010
United States of
Despite seeing a 2% rise, a hotel room in the UK cost on £101 £105 4%
America
average £83 a night, £12 below the average in the countries
Sweden £96 £105 9%
surveyed, perhaps indicating one of the appeals of the
Denmark £110 £102 -7%
“staycation” holiday for travellers looking for competitive
France £98 £101 3%
deals at a time of shrinking household budgets.
Canada £92 £100 10%
Figure 8 Average room prices and changes in 2010
Netherlands £94 £99 6%
compared with 2009 by country
Destination Average Average % Change Japan £105 £98 -6%
price per price per year on Greece £92 £98 6%
room room year
per night per night South Korea £91 £98 7%
2009 2010 Turkey £93 £97 4%
Russia £131 £132 1% Australia £81 £95 18%
Switzerland £123 £131 6% Indonesia £90 £94 4%
Brazil £104 £129 24% Mexico £88 £94 6%
Israel £123 £128 4% Austria £86 £93 8%
Singapore £97 £123 26% China £76 £92 21%
Norway £107 £120 12% Finland £96 £91 -5%
United Arab Emirates £125 £119 -4% Belgium £90 £91 1%
South Africa £98 £118 21% Argentina £83 £91 10%
Croatia £115 £115 0% Egypt £87 £90 4%
Italy £103 £107 3% Taiwan £102 £88 -14%


Destination Average Average % Change New York
room room year
per night per night
2009 2010
India £84 £86 3%

Germany £84 £85 1%

UNITED KINGDOM £81 £83 2%

Portugal £82 £81 -2%

Spain & Canary Islands £81 £81 0%

Malaysia £66 £78 18% Figure 9 Average room prices and changes in 2010
Iceland £79 £74 -6% compared with 2009 by price rises
Morocco £80 £72 -10% Destination Average Average % Change
Ireland £72 £69 -4%
room room year
Czech Republic £65 £67 3% per night per night
2009 2010
Hungary £70 £65 -8%
Singapore £97 £123 26%
Thailand £66 £65 -2%
Brazil £104 £129 24%
New Zealand £57 £65 13%
South Africa £98 £118 21%
Poland £65 £64 -1%
China £76 £92 21%
Singapore Australia £81 £95 18%

Mexico £88 £94 6%
United States of
£101 £105 4%
America
Turkey £93 £97 4%
Egypt £87 £90 4%
France £98 £101 3%


Figure 10 Average room prices and changes for 2010, Dubai
compared to 2009 by price falls
room room year
per night per night
2009 2010
Taiwan £102 £88 -14%

Morocco £80 £72 -10%

Hungary £70 £65 -8%

Denmark £110 £102 -7%

Japan £105 £98 -6%

Iceland £79 £74 -6%
United Arab
£125 £119 -4%
Emirates
Ireland £72 £69 -4%
Portugal £82 £81 -2%
Thailand £66 £65 -2%


4. Focus on the UK
Hotel room rates rose on average by 2% - from £81 to £83 Other notable rises include those seen in Wolverhampton (up
a night - across the UK from 2009 to 2010, a percentage 27%) and Stoke-on-Trent (up 28%) which has seen increased
increase mirroring the global pattern. visitor numbers since the football club entered the Premier
League in 2008.
However, the overall picture masks some dramatic price
movements across the country. At the other end of the scale, the Welsh cities of Cardiff
(down 6%) and Swansea (down 14%) saw sharp falls to £76
Many of the major tourist destinations saw some of the
and £69 respectively.
highest percentage price rises, as more budget-conscious
Britons stayed at home and a return of US travellers after the
fall in 2009. Prices in London rose 10% to £114 and Oxford
9% to £99.

Lake District destinations also witnessed increases with
prices in Bowness-on-Windermere hitting £142, up 23%, London
and Ambleside £113, a 6% rise as hoteliers were confident
enough of visitors to put up their rates.

The most expensive place was St Andrews in Scotland at
£162 a night on average – a 20% jump, partly caused by the
British Open golf tournament. St Andrews pushed Bath from
the top spot, with the spa city falling to fourth place in the
table.

Hotels in towns and cities near the M4 corridor – home
to the UK’s growing IT industry – saw double-digit rises:
Bracknell (up 18%) and Reading (up 15%). However, the
steepest rise was in Norwich where prices rose 38%.


120
150
180

0
60

30
90
St Andrews
Bowness-on-Windermere
London
Bath
Ambleside
St Peter Port
Edinburgh
Oxford
Cambridge
York
Brighton
UNITED KINGDOM
Average price per room per night 2010 (£)

Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Bracknell
Norwich
Liverpool
Manchester
Cardiff
Inverness
Bournemouth
Cheltenham
Bristol
Reading
Price rise year on year (%)

Glasgow
Southampton
Swansea
Belfast
Leeds
Birmingham
Sheffield
Stoke-on-Trent
Figure 11 Average price per room per night and price rise and fall in 2010 compared to 2009 across the UK

Nottingham
Bradford
Wolverhampton

The Hotel Price Index Review of hotel prices in 2010
Price fall year on year (%)

21

St Andrews
room room year
per night per night
2009 2010
Oxford £91 £99 9%

Cambridge £95 £94 -1%

York £87 £86 -1%

Brighton £82 £84 2%

UNITED KINGDOM £81 £83 2%
Newcastle-upon-
£79 £82 4%
Tyne
Bracknell £68 £80 18%

Figure 12 Average room prices and changes in 2010 across Norwich £56 £78 38%

the UK Liverpool £75 £77 4%
Manchester £75 £77 3%
room room year Cardiff £81 £76 -6%
per night per night
Inverness £70 £76 9%
2009 2010
St Andrews £135 £162 20% Bournemouth £69 £73 7%

Bowness-on- Cheltenham £69 £71 2%
£115 £142 23%
Windermere
Bristol £70 £71 2%
London £104 £114 10%
Reading £62 £71 15%
Bath £110 £113 2%
Glasgow £72 £71 -2%
Ambleside £106 £113 6%
Southampton £61 £69 13%
St Peter Port £110 £105 -5%
Swansea £81 £69 -14%
Edinburgh £96 £101 5%


Destination Average Average % Change Edinburgh
room room year
per night per night
2009 2010
Belfast £66 £68 3%

Leeds £66 £66 0%

Birmingham £57 £61 6%

Sheffield £60 £60 0%

Stoke-on-Trent £46 £59 28%

Nottingham £54 £57 6%
Figure 13 Average room prices and changes in 2010:
Bradford £55 £51 -7%
Scotland
Wolverhampton £36 £46 27% Destination Average Average % Change
Brighton room room year
per night per night
2009 2010
Edinburgh £96 £101 5%

Stirling £86 £78 -10%

Aberdeen £74 £77 5%

Inverness £70 £76 9%

Glasgow £72 £71 -2%

Perth £56 £68 22%

• Prices in the Scottish capital of Edinburgh rallied
by 5% in 2010 to average £101 a night. More flights


into Edinburgh Airport, the British Open golf tournament, Aberdeen
Edinburgh Festival and marathon all attracted record
visitor numbers in 2010.

• The average price paid in Inverness was also
substantially up, this time by 9%, taking room rates to
£76 on average. This came on the back of a surge
in demand from travellers heading to the Scottish
Highlands. Perth, on the key A9 route northwards, also
saw a huge 22% spike to £68.

• Aberdeen finished the year posting a 5% rise in prices
even though there had been a 5% fall in Q2 as hotels
tried to sustain occupancy.

• However, it was not all good news for Scottish hoteliers
with Stirling suffering a 10% drop to £78 after a strong
2009 with the Homecoming events. Glasgow saw a
smaller 2% drop as a result of a fall in conference
business at hotels and therefore lower business
bookings.


UK hotel price changes
2009 - 2010

St. Andrews £162 20%

Glasgow £71 2% Edinburgh £101 5%

Newcastle-upon-Tyne £82 4%

Belfast £68 3%

Leeds £66 1%

Manchester £77 3%

Liverpool £77 4%

Leicester £49 1%
Birmingham £61 6% Norwich £78 38%

Cardiff £76 6% London £114 10%

Portsmouth £78 0% Brighton £84 2%


5. Prices paid at home and away
US travellers are the biggest spenders on hotel rooms when UK travellers are joint eighth in the table of biggest spenders,
they travel abroad, according to the Hotels.com Hotel Price splashing out on average £95 abroad along with the
Index. They spend an average £104 a night on hotel rooms Swedes. However, they spend £12 less - £83 a night - on
when they head overseas, £1 more than Russian travellers. domestic hotel rooms.

At the other end of the scale, South Africans are the savviest The biggest domestic spenders are the Norwegians and
when outside their borders, parting with just £56 a night, Singaporeans who both spend an average £117 a night on
according to the report. hotel rooms at home. Travellers from India are those with the
best eye for value within their own borders, spending just
£59 when in a domestic destination.

Las Vegas Udaipur


Figure 14 Average room prices paid by travellers when Nationality Average price Average price
travelling within their own countries versus those paid paid per room paid per
when travelling room when
overseas in 2010
within own travelling
Nationality Average price Average price country abroad
paid per room paid per HOME AWAY
when travelling room when
within own travelling Mexico £71 £74
country abroad
France £70 £87
HOME AWAY
Norway £117 £98 Ireland £70 £94

Singapore £117 £85 Spain & Canary Islands £67 £90

Russia £106 £103 India £59 £96

Japan £97 £100

Denmark £97 £91

Sweden £95 £95

Brazil £93 £93

South Africa £91 £56

Australia £90 £99

Netherlands £84 £87

UNITED KINGDOM £83 £95

Italy £81 £91

USA £74 £104

Portugal £74 £99

Germany £74 £86


6. Where to go for £100 a night
With the emphasis on value for money, travellers with £100 a
night to spend on their hotel room could choose from a wide
Figure 15 The star rating that can be purchased with £100
selection of destinations as they searched for luxury for less.
per night in the world’s top cities
Nine cities now offer five-star hotel accommodation for £100 Destination GBP 100
a night, with five within a four-hour flight from the UK. Those
Buenos Aires 5
prepared to travel further afield can sample the best for less
than three figures in Buenos Aires, Guangzhou, Jakarta and Guangzhou 5
Santiago. Jakarta 5

In comparison, £100 will buy you a three-star hotel room in Marrakech 5
London and only one star in New York. Santiago 5

Warsaw 5
Buenos Aires
Budapest 5

Lisbon 5

Tallinn 5

Bangkok 4

Prague 4

Berlin 4

Cairo 4

Beijing 4

Dublin 4

Las Vegas 4

Helsinki 4


Destination GBP 100 Destination GBP 100

Madrid 4 Amsterdam 3

Melbourne 4 Chicago 3

Vienna 4 Copenhagen 3

Dubai 4 Stockholm 3

Istanbul 4 Cancun 3

Shanghai 4 LONDON 3

Barcelona 4 Moscow 3

Mexico City 4 Nice 3

Sydney 4 Rome 3

Taipei 4 Toronto 3

Bali 3 Singapore 3

Frankfurt 3 Tokyo 3

Munich 3 Los Angeles 3

Cape Town 3 San Francisco 3

Edinburgh 3 Vancouver 3

Hong Kong 3 Miami 3

Mumbai 3 Montreal 3

Milan 3 Venice 3

Orlando 3 Paris 2

New Delhi 3 New York 1


7. Average room prices by star
rating
Hotels.com analysed the average prices paid for hotel rooms
Figure 16 Top 10 most expensive cities for 5 star hotels
across different star ratings in the world’s top cities.
400
The data demonstrates where UK travellers can find best
value. It also highlights those cities where shopping around 350
for the best deal can yield dividends: in some cases,
travellers can end up paying more for a property with a lower 300
star rating.
250

Pounds (£)
The Polish capital of Warsaw offers the best deal on luxury
for less with five-star accommodation costing just £75 a 200
night with Marrakech in Morocco serving it up for just £15
more. Jakarta provides four-star luxury for only £65. 150

San Francisco
At the other end of the scale, New York offers the most 100

Los Angeles

Cape Town

Jerusalem
expensive five-star and four-star hotel rooms at £400 and

New York

Geneva
50

Venice
£217 respectively. Geneva is the second most expensive

Tokyo

Paris

Nice
five-star provider on £300. London offers it for £212. 0

Warsaw

Hotel star ratings explained
There is no universal star-rating system. Each country
has its own, and in some cases, such as the UK, more
than one. This means travellers should be aware of
a possible disparity of standards and facilities when
booking rooms with the same star ratings in different
countries.


Figure 17 Average hotel room prices by star rating during 2010
Destination
Destination Istanbul £42 £65 £92 £133
Amsterdam £76 £89 £113 £152 Jakarta N/A N/A £65 N/A
Bali N/A £45 £105 £159 Jerusalem N/A £81 N/A £225
Bangkok £26 £30 £66 £115 Las Vegas £30 £46 £82 £131
Barcelona £66 £85 £98 £157 Lisbon £46 £59 £78 £101
Beijing £37 £39 £68 £128 London £64 £88 £127 £212
Berlin £56 £56 £76 £115 Los Angeles £67 £90 £164 £265
Boston £86 £119 £153 N/A Madrid £60 £73 £83 £135
Budapest £35 £42 £63 £101 Marrakech N/A £50 £64 £90
Buenos Aires £41 £79 £97 N/A Melbourne N/A £56 £88 £129
Cairo £91 £36 £78 £118 Mexico City £32 £54 £102 N/A
Cancun £39 £85 £131 N/A Miami £62 £101 £160 £206
Cape Town £94 £70 £108 £240 Milan N/A £72 £113 £203
Chicago £71 £91 £116 N/A Montreal £69 £101 £129 N/A
Copenhagen £70 £92 £110 £155 Moscow N/A £85 £135 £196
Dubai £48 £50 £84 £180 Mumbai £45 £72 £106 £146
Dublin £51 £58 £73 £130 Munich £62 £84 £103 £158
Edinburgh £70 £87 £104 £153 New Delhi £26 £53 £132 £171
Frankfurt £61 £74 £103 £160 New York £120 £167 £217 £400
Geneva N/A £119 £151 £300 Nice £70 £82 £140 £238
Guangzhou N/A £63 £90 N/A Orlando £38 £65 £114 £170
Helsinki N/A £89 £88 £134 Oslo £90 £104 £119 £147
Hong Kong £39 £71 £109 £188 Paris £74 £108 £167 £296


Destination Venice
Prague £40 £48 £63 £113

Rio de Janeiro £97 £127 £212 N/A

Rome £76 £92 £116 £210

San Francisco £66 £95 £130 £262

Santiago N/A £85 N/A N/A

Sao Paulo N/A £90 £199 N/A

Seattle £74 £100 £139 £147

Seoul N/A £69 £121 £170

Shanghai £26 £60 £92 £174

Singapore £48 £94 £129 £200

Stockholm £63 £87 £119 £140 Rome
Sydney N/A £65 £100 £160

Taipei N/A £65 £100 N/A

Tallinn £31 £37 £54 £102

Tokyo £60 £86 £155 £299

Toronto £66 £89 £129 N/A

Vancouver £70 £96 £132 £171

Venice £62 £100 £139 £221

Vienna N/A £73 £84 £144

Warsaw N/A £55 £69 £75

Washington £82 £119 £140 N/A


8. Luxury for less

The falling cost of luxury 15%) and five-star (down 4%) to £78 and £118 respectively.

Travellers searching for the best in hotel accommodation Nearer to home, Dublin’s mounting economic problems were
were able to benefit from dramatic price falls across the reflected in price reductions in four star hotels, dropping 6%
world in 2010. to £73. Helsinki in Finland also registered a 9% fall for four-
star to £88 and 2% for five-star to £134.
For example, Marrakech saw a big 9% fall for a five-star
room to just £90 a night and a 3% fall in the four-star Those looking for the high life but wanting to spend
category to £64. The Estonian capital of Tallinn saw four-star substantially less than they did in 2009 should look no
prices drop sharply by 13% to just £54 - the cheapest in the further than the Hotels.com HPI guide to “Luxury for Less” in
report. Five-star accommodation in Venice was 11% cheaper the table overleaf which shows where in the world four-star
in 2010 than 2009 at £221 a night on average, the biggest and five-star hotel prices have fallen the most.
percentage fall in this category. Five-star was 7% cheaper in
Marrakech
Budapest at £101 and a four-star room was 3% less at just
£62. Prague experienced a 3% fall in this category to £63.
Copenhagen also posted a 5% drop for four-star but prices
were still relatively high at £110.

However, those prepared to fly longer distances could really
cash in on rooms at the upper end of the luxury spectrum.
There was a 17% drop for four-star rooms in the Taiwanese
capital of Taipei to £100 and Bangkok saw a 4% fall to £115
for five-star luxury, possibly as a result of the political turmoil
affecting the Thai capital. Dubai’s financial troubles and the
increase in capacity saw good four-star deals at £84 – a 7%
plunge – and Cairo registered falls for both four-star (down


Figure 18 The falling cost of luxury: where prices at top-end Figure 19 Affordable luxury: 15 destinations with the
hotels fell by the greatest extent between 2009 and 2010 best-value five-star hotels in 2010

Destination Star Rating Average Average % Change Destination Destination
Warsaw £75 Melbourne £129
room room year
per night per night Marrakech £90 Dublin £130
2009 2010
Budapest £101 Las Vegas £131
Taipei £120 £100 -17%
Lisbon £101 Istanbul £133
Cairo £92 £78 -15%
Tallinn £102 Helsinki £134
Tallinn £61 £54 -13%
Prague £113 Madrid £135
Venice £247 £221 -11%
Berlin £115 Stockholm £140
Guangzhou £99 £90 -10%
Bangkok £115 Vienna £144
Marrakech £98 £90 -9%
Pisa £117 Mumbai £146
Helsinki £97 £88 -9%
Cairo £118 Seattle £147
Budapest £109 £101 -7%
Beijing £128 Oslo £148
Dubai £91 £84 -7%
Dublin £78 £73 -6%
Copenhagen £116 £110 -5%
Cairo £123 £118 -4%
Bangkok £120 £115 -4%

Lisbon £81 £78 -3%

Marrakech £66 £64 -3%

Prague £66 £63 -3%

Budapest £64 £62 -3%


9. Travel habits

Top UK destinations for UK travellers Figure 20 Top UK destinations for UK travellers
Rank Destination
London was the most popular domestic destination,
1 London
according to the Hotels.com Hotel Price Index.
2 Manchester
Manchester and Edinburgh came in at number two and
3 Edinburgh
three, swapping places from 2009.
4 Birmingham
Birmingham and Glasgow completed the top-five list of the 5 Glasgow
most popular home destinations for UK travellers.
6 Liverpool

7 Cardiff

8 Bristol
London
9 Leeds

10 Brighton

11 Bournemouth

12 Nottingham

13 York

14 Belfast

15 Newcastle-upon-Tyne

16 Blackpool

17 Oxford

18 Sheffield

19 Southampton

20 Aberdeen


Top overseas destinations for UK travellers Figure 21 Top overseas destinations for UK travellers

New York was the most popular overseas destination for Rank Destination Country
UK travellers in 2010, despite rising hotel prices. In fact there 1 New York United States
are five US cities in the top 20 list, with Las Vegas, San 2 Paris France
Francisco, Los Angeles and Orlando also featuring. 3 Dublin Ireland

Paris was the second-most popular overseas destination 4 Las Vegas United States
and top European city for UK travellers. However, other top 5 Amsterdam Netherlands
European city-break destinations also feature prominently 6 Rome Italy
with Dublin, Amsterdam, Rome, Barcelona and Berlin all in
7 Barcelona Spain
the top 10.
8 Dubai United Arab Emirates
Other destinations on the list include the Far East cities of
9 San Francisco United States
Hong Kong, Bangkok and Singapore.
10 Berlin Germany
Marrakech was at number 18 in the list with its affordable
11 Prague Czech Republic
luxury and relative proximity to the UK.
12 Los Angeles United States
New York
13 Hong Kong China
14 Orlando United States

15 Madrid Spain

16 Bangkok Thailand

17 Venice Italy

18 Marrakech Morocco

19 Budapest Hungary

20 Singapore Singapore


Top UK destinations for travellers from Figure 22 Top UK destinations for overseas travellers

overseas Rank Destination
1 London
The top destinations for visitors to the UK are fairly
predictable with London, Edinburgh, Manchester, Liverpool, 2 Edinburgh

Glasgow, Birmingham, Belfast and Brighton the eight most 3 Manchester
visited places. 4 Liverpool

The university city of Oxford, with its limited supply of hotels, 5 Glasgow
proved more popular than rival Cambridge and the university 6 Birmingham
city Bristol made number 10 on the list. 7 Belfast

8 Brighton
Manchester
9 Oxford

10 Bristol

11 Leeds

12 Aberdeen

13 Cardiff

14 Nottingham

15 Newcastle-upon-Tyne

16 Gatwick Airport
17 Cambridge

18 Bath

19 York
20 Bournemouth


About Hotels.com
As part of the Expedia group which operates in all major For further information
markets, Hotels.com offers more than 130,000 quality hotels,
B&Bs and serviced apartments worldwide. If a customer For more information/press enquiries or spokespeople,

can find the same deal for less on a pre-paid hotel, please contact:

Hotels.com will match it. Hotels.com benefits from one of
the largest hotel contracting teams in the industry negotiating
Alison Couper
the best rates for its customers, plus there are 1.8m reviews
+44 (0)20 7019 2360
from users who have actually stayed in the hotels to ensure
acouper@hotels.com
customers make an informed choice when booking.

Hotels.com has recently launched its Welcome Rewards
customers loyalty programme in the UK, where customers Kate Hopcraft
can earn a free night for every ten nights stayed (subject to +44 (0)20 7019 2165
Welcome Rewards terms and conditions as set out at www. khopcraft@hotels.com
hotels.com). Hotels.com was voted top in the ‘Service’ and
‘Customer Friendly Website’ categories by the German
Institute of Service Quality in January 2011. Travellers can Cordy Griffiths
book online or by contacting one of the multilingual call +44 (0)20 7019 2268

centres on 020 3027 8146. cgriffiths@hotels.com

The company currently operates more than 75 Hotels.com
sites around the world including 31 sites in 24 languages
across EMEA. The European sites launched in the UK in
2001 and now attract several million unique users every
month and thousands of people now book bed nights
through Hotels.com every day.


© 2011 Hotels.com, L.P. The Hotel Price Index (HPI®), this report and its contents are the copyright of Hotels.com, L.P. All rights reserved.
Any reproduction of this report or its contents must acknowledge www.hotels.com as the source.

ED Consulting Hotel Price Index 2010

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