Average European Hotel Rates Highest Since 2008 | trivago reports

In May, the average cost of a standard double room in one of Europe's 50 most popular cities is 117 pounds – the highest European average since October 2008. Prices rose in 47 of the top 50 cities, and a weaker exchange rate makes travel to the rest of Europe even more expensive for British travellers. In the UK, prices remained steady with the exception of Edinburgh, whose hotel rates rose 15%. These are the findings of the trivago Hotel Price Index (tHPI) prepared each month by the hotel price comparison website www.trivago.co.uk.

London, The European hotel industry has seen a sharp rise in overnight rates this month; with the average cost of a standard double room reaching an average of 117 pounds, travellers find themselves paying nine percent more than in April (107 pounds). In addition, this is also the highest European average since October 2008. In the United Kingdom, prices remained largely steady, with only three cities experiencing major upward or downward momentum.

Weak exchange rate further increases hotel costs for British travellers

An increase in hotel prices in May has been observed in 47 of the 50 cities listed in Hotel Price Index. In Cannes, where the International Film Festival takes place, prices climbed 29 percent to 141 pounds. The neighboring city of Nice (118 pounds) similarly saw a price climb of 22 percent. In Turin (119 pounds), travellers are paying 28 percent more than in April, while frequent visitors to Barcelona can expect hotel rates to rise by 21 percent to 136 pounds. In the Scandinavian cities of Stockholm (165 pounds, up 24 percent), Copenhagen (136 pounds, plus 18 percent) and Oslo (152 pounds, plus 17 percent), visitors must also take rising hotel rates into account. Geneva (224 pounds, plus 14 percent) and Venice (209 pounds, plus 15 percent) are May's most expensive European city destinations.

A particularly weak exchange rate has further impacted prices, however, meaning that British travellers are paying approximately 5% more than their European counterparts as a result of the GBP-EUR exchange rate.

UK: Minor fluctuations in hotel rates

Continuing last month's trend, UK prices have remained largely steady despite the significant changes in hotel rates experienced throughout the rest of Europe. The cities of Blackpool (67 pounds), Glasgow (82 pounds), and Bristol (92 pounds) only rose one percent from last month. Cardiff rose four percent to 87 pounds, while Newcastle rates fell three percent to 96 pounds and Liverpool's hotel prices dropped 5 percent to 92 pounds. The capital's rates only rose eight percent to 168 pounds per night – a modest increase compared to previous months. Edinburgh was the only city to experience any significant price climbs, registering at 125 pounds (+15 percent). In contrast, Sheffield (68 pounds) fell 11% and Manchester (67 pounds) dropped 32 percent.

The www.trivago.co.uk hotel price index shows the average overnight accommodation prices for the most popular European cities on trivago. Prices for a standard double room are calculated on the basis of 160,000 daily price inquiries for overnight hotel stays generated through the trivago hotel price comparison service. trivago stores all hotel enquiries for each month and therefore gives an overview of hotel accommodation prices for the upcoming month. The tHPI reflects the hotel prices within the European online hotel market: The overnight accommodation prices of 53 online travel agents and hotel chains create the average hotel prices for cities, regions and countries within Europe.