UK - Early Easter contributes to drops in occupancy and profit - Hotel Industry News
Written: 1st May, 2008
UK Chain hotels recorded an overall drop in occupancy and profit in the first quarter of 2008, according to the latest HotStats survey by TRI Hospitality Consulting.
The sample of 520 properties is dominated by business hotels and the performance data was affected by Easter arriving in March this year compared to April in 2007.
'Although some chain hoteliers enjoy an increase in leisure demand during Easter, it tends not to compensate for the losses in rate and volume from the corporate market,' said Jonathan Langston, managing director, TRI Hospitality Consulting.
Despite growth in January and February, the early Easter has caused overall declines in the first quarter figures for provincial hotels. Daily income before fixed charges (IBFC) fell by 8.8 per cent to £25.10 per available room in the first quarter. A 1.6 point drop in average occupancy to 65.1 per cent and weak rate growth resulted in revpar down by 1.3 per cent to £46.93.
A few city markets bucked the overall trend of lower demand for branded hotel accommodation in the first quarter. In Leeds, occupancy rose by three percentage points to 71 per cent, in Sheffield by
3.2 points to 68.3 per cent and in Cambridge by 1.8 points to 69.6 per cent.
Source Hotel News Resource