UK hotel room rates fall 12%

Average UK room rates dropped last year, with the fallout from Brexit hitting prices.

The data from hotel content specialists HRS showed average rates fell nearly 12 per cent compared to 2015.

London saw rates drop 9 per cent from 2015 with rooms costing £150 a night in 2016. It remained the UK’s most expensive destination and second most expensive in Europe.

Across the rest of the UK, Edinburgh (£107) and Manchester (£102) were the second and third most expensive destinations in the UK.

Comparing London’s room rates against those in some of Europe’s major cities, the UK capital fell from the top spot in 2015, seeing Zurich named the most expensive destination with rooms averaging £152 a night. 

Istanbul saw the biggest rate drop of nearly 18 per cent, £65 a night in 2016 – a price that was matched only by Warsaw as the joint cheapest top destination to stay in Europe.

Table 1: Average prices per room for hotel accommodation in major cities in UK in 2016. Evaluation period: 01.01.2016 – 31.12.2016, collected on 22.12.2016

Table 2: Average prices per room for hotel accommodation in major cities in Europe in 2016. Evaluation period: 01.01.2016 – 31.12.2016, collected on 22.12.2016

Andy Besent, managing director of HRS (UK & Ireland), said:  “The fall out of the Brexit vote from 2016 is likely to have had a knock on effect on the average room rates of hotels in the UK, but the hotel industry should be prepared further as we brace ourselves for what might be the full impact of Brexit later this year, and also the performance of the British pound against the Euro.”