London hotels see healthy July figures

Hotels in London experienced healthy sales in July, according to figures from PKF Hotel Consultancy Services.

Occupancy jumped 2% on the same period last year from 86.5% to 88.3%, while room rates increased from £140.38 to £162.33.

Figures were boosted by people visiting London for the Farnborough Airshow, the Proms, the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show and the summer opening of Buckingham Palace.

In the regions, occupancy fell slightly from 77.2% in 2007 to 75.9% this year, although rates increased by 2.4% to £77. However, European Capital of Culture Liverpool saw a 12.6% increase in occupancy.

PKF partner Robert Barnard said: “Hotels in the capital had a fantastic July, benefiting from the various summer events and defying current UK economic conditions. As predicted last month, the Farnborough Airshow also played an important role. In the regions, overall figures remained steady, but Liverpool was again the city which stood out.

“In contrast, Edinburgh saw further drops across occupancy and rooms yield.”