Europe’s Room Rates Still Above 2019 Prices for Half-Empty Hotels
Despite being half-empty, Europe’s hotels are charging more than they were before the pandemic. On average, room rates are $31 more expensive, according to auditing and booking platform Tripbam, which has compared corporate booking data from February 2021 to the same month in 2019, when the average rate was $216. This is despite volumes remaining depressed at about 50 percent down on comparable 2019 levels, for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
Despite being half-empty, Europe’s hotels are charging more than they were before the pandemic. On average, room rates are $31 more expensive, according to auditing and booking platform Tripbam, which has compared corporate booking data from February 2021 to the same month in 2019, when the average rate was $216. This is despite volumes remaining depressed at about 50 percent down on comparable 2019 levels, for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
“Bearing in mind we’re at about 50 percent volumes, the fact the hotels are managing to hold up such a rate is quite phenomenal,” said Peter Grover, Tripbam’s European managing director, during a webinar that also looked at data across Asia Pacific. That region recorded a 60 percent drop on 2019 levels, and rates $51 per night
Rate Progression
Tripbam’s data also pointed towards “significant growth in market rates and booked rates across five-star properties” which was helping to nudge the prices above pre-pandemic levels.
The recovery of corporate travel was behind this new push, according to one hotel executive.
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