Weekend short breaks down in August

A combination of poor weather and the credit crunch appears to have impacted on weekend breaks in August, with weekend bedspace occupancy across the UK down considerably on the previous year, though figures for weekdays stays remained stable.

According to the latest edition of UK Occupancy Survey for Serviced Accommodation covering August 2008, weekend occupancy levels decreased when compared with August 2007 by 14% for bedspace occupancy and by 6% for room occupancy. However, weekday occupancy rates changed only slightly, increasing by 1% for bedspace occupancy and a similar decrease for room occupancy.

Not all sectors were affected in the same ways however – B&Bs saw a slight uplift in overall occupancy, while more expensive guesthouses and hotels fell back.

When compared with August 2007, occupancy levels rose in establishments with 1-3 and 4-10 letting bedrooms but fell for the remaining four larger size categories. The greatest falls were in the largest establishments (ie those with more than 100 letting bedrooms).

Overall UK bedspace occupancy in August 2008 was 59% - 6% points lower than in August 2007. At 71%, room occupancy was 3% lower than the same period last year.

For a full breakdown of August 2008 occupancy figures download a pdf copy of the UK Occupancy Survey.