UK hoteliers continue to hold steady

June was another steady month for UK hoteliers with most reporting increased rooms yields, according to preliminary monthly figures released by PKF Hotel Consultancy Services.

In the regions, room rate increased by 2.0% from £77.00 in 2007 to £78.56 in 2008. Occupancy dipped a little from 76.8% to 75.0% this year – a drop of 2.5%. Overall rooms yield fell by 0.5%. The year-to-date figures show that rooms yield has so far risen 1.1% on the same period last year.

Hoteliers in Liverpool, European Capital of Culture for 2008, continue to maximise profits recording a significant 19.4% increase in rooms yield from 53.37% to 63.72%. This was a culmination of an 11.1% increase in occupancy on the same period last year and a 7.4% rise in room rate.

Birmingham also had a strong month with a 4.1% increase in room rate and a 3.5% rise in occupancy.

In London, room rate rose from £148.14 to £158.51 – an increase of 7.0% between 2007 and 2008. Occupancy dipped by 2.6%, but this is most likely due to the beginning of the holiday season affecting business travel. Overall, rooms yield rose by a healthy 4.3% in London.

Robert Barnard, partner for Hotel Consultancy Services at PKF, said, "These preliminary figures for June show that the UK hotel industry continues to remain steady in 2008."

"There has been a slight decrease in the occupancy figures for some cities this month, but the beginning of the summer holiday season goes some way towards explaining this."

"It should also be noted that the decreases are very small and, as 2007 was such a strong year, slight decreases are not a major concern particularly as the rooms yield year-to-date figures for both London and the regions are so far higher than the same period in 2007."

For more information on PKF and this monthly hotel survey, visit their website www.pkf.co.uk.