Mixed fortunes for region’s hotels

THE summer's floods and an increase in budget accommodation have led to a decrease in revenue for some of Yorkshire's hotels.

The latest results from the Hotel Benchmark Survey by business advisory firm Deloitte show that despite a reported softening in economic conditions the revenue per available room (revPAR) for UK hotels has increased 6.8 per cent in the year to September.

On the downside however, Leeds and Sheffield fared less well with Leeds suffering a decrease in revPAR growth of 3.1 per cent and Sheffield a drop of 1.7 per cent.

The average room rate in Leeds remains at £62 a night while in Sheffield it is £55, compared with £58 in the same period last year, a fall of 4.9 per cent.

The severe flooding in South Yorkshire in the summer together with rising competition and fewer events are blamed for Sheffield's decline in revenue while an over supply of budget hotels in Leeds is seen as having an adverse impact on revPAR.

The figures are slightly better for York, with the average price of a room increasing to £69 from £67 while revPAR was up by 1.7 per cent.

Martin Jenkins, hospitality partner at Deloitte's Leeds office said:

“While growth has slowed slightly, we remain positive about the outlook for hotel performance.”

He added: “For the hotel industry, demand is driven by both the business and consumer markets.

“Most companies continue to generate profits so corporate bookings remain strong and consumer spending has not yet declined as unemployment levels remain low.”

“However, if the UK and other key economies do slow down, any reduction in travel as a result of reduced consumer and company spending could be as early as quarter two next year.”

Scotland saw the best performance of the three countries with revPAR growth of 8.9 per cent while Aberdeen had the highest growth of any UK city at 16.9 per cent.

High room rates from corporate demand in the oil and gas industry means the average hotel room in Aberdeen now costs £74 a night.