Budget hotel chain Premier Inn has continued to see “strong” sales for its London properties but the UK regional market has been “weak”.
Premier Inn, which is owned by Whitbread, said that “like-for-like” sales in London were up by 3.1 per cent for the three months to November 29, 2018, while UK regional sales were down 1 per cent year-on-year.
For the UK as a whole, Premier Inn saw a 0.6 per cent rise in average room rate to £65.30 while occupancy dropped by 1.4 percentage points to 80.9 per cent. Premier Inn currently has 74,508 rooms in the UK and is expecting to add between 3,000 and 4,000 rooms in the next financial year.
Alison Brittain, Whitbread’s chief executive, said: “The UK business achieved total accommodation sales growth of 3.5 per cent in the third quarter.
“Our performance in the quarter reflects a strong central London market and a weak regional market. We are cautious about the macro environment for the next financial year due to increased uncertainty and continuing high inflation.
“Our unique model and leading market position in the UK puts us in a strong position to capture structural growth opportunities in the UK and internationally.”
premierinn.com