According to the latest Hotels.com, Hotel Price Index (HPI), hotel
prices across the world have experienced pronounced volatility, as a
result of political turmoil and natural disasters during the first half
of 2011. The average price of a room around the world rose by just three
per cent but this marked some steep rises and falls in regions affected
by the historic events in the first six months of the year.
Other
factors such as currency strength and supply of rooms also impacted
average room prices across the world, although the report shows that
overall these were just six per cent higher than when the HPI was
launched in 2004, representing outstanding value for travellers. Prices
fell six per cent in Asia Pacific year-on-year but rose in all other
areas: four per cent in North America, two per cent in Europe and Latin
America and one per cent in the Caribbean.
The uprisings which
occurred in North Africa and the Middle East triggered substantial
reductions in hotel prices across the region as tourists and business
travellers stayed away not only from countries directly hit by the civil
unrest but also from those, which escaped political protest. However,
the fall in consumer confidence was good news for destinations in
southern Europe as travellers returned to more traditional havens. The
rising demand pushed up prices in some Spanish sunshine destinations and
the overall HPI for Europe rose two per cent compared with the first
half of last year. Ireland was also helped by the high-profile visits of
Queen Elizabeth II and President Obama, which triggered a slight market
recovery in hotel prices by attracting visitors and boosting demand.
Average
prices for hotel rooms across Asia Pacific fell by six per cent over
the period. The Japanese earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis at
Fukushima led to reduced occupancy and falling demand in the country and
also had a knock-on effect in other parts of the region as the Japanese
chose to stay close to home. However, despite the downward price
pressures, there were also some marked rises in the region, especially
in strong economies such as Australia where corporate travel continued
strongly and the Australian Dollar remained high.
New Delhi
bagged the top slot in the list of most popular places for domestic
travellers. Singapore, with its new luxury hotel developments such as
Marina Bay Sands, became the most popular destination abroad for Indian
travellers replacing Hong Kong, which slipped to fourth. Bangkok was
second, moving up from seventh in H1 of 2010. Bangkok took over from
London, which dropped to third position. There were nine Asian
destinations in the top 20, four in Europe and seven in the US, headed
by New York.
The list of favourite Indian destinations for
international tourists had a familiar look with New Delhi, Mumbai,
Bengaluru and Chennai holding their places at the top. Goa became less
popular slipping from fifth to ninth.
The factor that travellers
from economic powerhouses enjoys lower hotel rates, was also evident in
other countries with strong currencies and economies and meant citizens
from nations such as Brazil, Sweden and Switzerland benefited from lower
prices in many destinations, particularly the US and UK where the USD
and GBP struggled to hold their ground.
David Roche, President,
Hotels.com said, “This year, for the first time, dramatic political and
natural world events, such as the Japanese earthquake and Arab Spring,
have caused the most pronounced level of hotel price volatility.
However, despite some exceptional price movements, it is important to
highlight that overall the picture has been one of gradual recovery with
many room rates still on a par with what they were seven years ago,
representing great value for the traveller.”
Roche further added,
“Other factors such foreign exchange fluctuations, one-off political
sporting, cultural or trade events and discounting by hoteliers can also
influence prices but it’s important to underline the general health of
the sector so far this year. This can be seen by the growth in the
supply of rooms all over the world with nearly 6,000 hotel projects in
development. This increase in accommodation also acts as a brake on
prices and, once again, is good news for the consumer.”
“Individual
markets in Asia Pacific showed marked differences, presenting a mixed
picture of results. Overall lower average prices paid for hotels in the
region means good news both for travellers coming into Asia and for
travellers within Asia. During this period, consumers travelling to Asia
have benefited from the favourable exchange rates in many of their
currencies. One note of advice to travellers is to search and compare
alternatives, as individual markets exhibit different trends.” added
Johan Svanstrom, Managing Director of Hotels.com Asia Pacific.
The
Hotels.com HPI is based on bookings made on Hotels.com sites around the
world and tracks the real prices paid per hotel room (rather than
advertised rates) for about 1,25,000 properties across more than 19,000
locations. The latest HPI looks at prices in the first half of 2011
compared to the same period last year.
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