Demand for summer staycations following the lifting of travel curbs helped Travelodge surpass pre-pandemic profit levels.
Adjusted earnings [ebitda] for the three months to September 30 came in at £87.2 million against £57.5 million in the same period in 2019 and £31 million last year.
The average room rate rose by 13.3% to £64.04 over £41.11 in summer 2020 and £56.53 in 2019.
The budget chain’s revenue per available room (revpar) was up 11.8% to £53.54 from £47.89 in 2019 and just £21.24 last year.
The occupancy level fell marginally by 1.1 percentage points to 83.6% over 2019 but as up on the 51.7% level in summer 2020 as 15 new hotels opened to give a total of 593 with 45,285 rooms.
Chief executive Craig Bonnar said: “Following the lifting of all Covid-19 restrictions Travelodge has delivered a record trading performance in quarter 3.
“We saw a significant increase in demand post 19 July, with very strong levels of domestic leisure demand across the UK this summer, good ‘blue collar’ business demand and we also benefited from the reduced VAT rate.
“The budget segment continues to recover ahead of the total UK market, and Travelodge has continued its seven-year track record of outperformance against the market segment.
“Whilst forecasting remains a challenge, and we continue to face a range of possible outcomes, we expect to return to 2019 repar levels during 2022, driven by continued leisure and ‘blue collar’ business demand offsetting a slower recovery in ‘white collar’ corporate demand.
“With our large network of hotels stretching the length and breadth of the UK, a strong brand heritage which appeals to a wide mix of customers and our low cost business model, we are well positioned to benefit from the on-going recovery and future growth opportunities.
“So, whilst we do continue to face uncertainty in the short-term, we remain confident in the long-term prospects for budget hotels.”