New figures released by the Hotel Booking Agents Association (HBAA) say that the average size of meetings booked so far in 2019 is significantly ahead of that experienced in 2018.
The HBAA Meetings Barometer for 2018, developed in association with MeetingsBenchmark, reveals that while there was little difference between the size of meetings in 2018 compared with 2017, bookings for the year so far have increased in size dramatically, as shown in the chart below.
Source: HBAA
The organisation also revealed that the average spend per meeting increased by around 1% from £1,954 in 2017 to £1,971 in 2018.
It says the tool spent on meetings in the UK is now £120.2 million, up from £113.3 million the previous year. The average day delegate rate (DDR) is now £32.89, only 1p more than in 2017, while the 24-hour rate has shot up from £133.84 to £138.63, a rise of 3.6%.
The benchmark reveals a wide variation in average DDR across the country. The figure for London stands at £39.97, Manchester £31.92, Birmingham £29.87, Scotland £27.54, Bristol £27.51, Leeds £26.56 and Newcastle £24.91.
HBAA chair Angie Mason says the barometer "highlights several good reasons to be positive and optimistic about the year ahead". But what is good for agents may be less positive for buyers of meetings.
24-hour rates make up around 43% of all attendees at meetings. With higher rates and higher numbers of attendees, meetings buyers could be in for a tough 2019 — and that is without factoring things the uncertainty around Brexit.