Investors Undeterred by Drop in US Visitors to the UK — Photo by TOPHOTELPROJECTS

This past September, the United Kingdom saw a drop in the number of visitors to the country. This drop can largely be attributed to an 8 percent fall in the number of travelers coming from the United States. While all this comes during a year in which the overall value of the pound is staying low, the developments have not yet swayed investors.

UK Tourism Problems

That 8 percent drop in visitors from the United States is an on the year number. This is one of what might be several concerning numbers. One of the others is that the short-haul travel numbers for the United Kingdom also fell 0.3 percent year-on-year, according to a report from the British Hospitality Association's Travel Monitor.

That's the bad news. The good news is that overall spend in the United Kingdom by overseas residents has gone up 2 percent, even with business traveler numbers being on a larger decline of 18 percent year-to-year for September. Still, again it's not all bad news, as holiday passenger numbers rose 1.7 percent year-to-year.

Investments in the UK

These mildly discouraging numbers for the month and year, however, have not deterred investors. In fact, Colliers International was forecasting "an improving level of hotel transactional activity in 2018."

Experts have said that in spite of some budding fears over the country's tourism performance, domestic as well as internal investors are still demonstrating enthusiasm. They largely are continuing to view UK hotel projects as an attractive opportunity for investment.

There is an increased demand for provincial hotels in the country, particularly for those that feature global branded stock. It seems as though international investors find the weaker sterling enticing. Buyers, of course, are especially finding reasonably priced, underinvested and underperforming hotels appealing, as these properties are rich with opportunity for turnaround.

The drop in tourists visiting the United Kingdom, however, is not without repercussions. While investors are excited to look for bargains, hotels will have to turn their focuses to domestic business as part of an effort to make up some of the revenue lost from the drop in international guests. This may prove to be problematic as interest rates in the country are rising. Brexit is also creating uncertainty, which may challenge the number of UK residents who are able and willing to indulge in a staycation.

Let's take a look at a few projects currently underway in the United Kingdom:

Great Scotland Yard Hotel

Conversion of the historic police HQ Great Scotland Yard into a five-star luxury hotel …[READ MORE]

Wanda Vista London

Part of the high-profile One Nine Elms development on the banks of the Thames, the Wanda Vista Hotel is being created within one of the two towers …[READ MORE]

Hard Rock Hotel London

A conversion of the existing Cumberland Hotel, the Hard Rock Hotel London will be located directly at Marble Arch on Hyde Park …[READ MORE]

More information on hotel projects in the UK can be found on TOPHOTELPROJECTS, the specialized service provider of cutting-edge information of the hospitality industry.

Jule Grass
Marketing Manager
+49 4261 4140 309
TOPHOTELPROJECTS