Corporate-paid hotel rates in the United States were largely
stable while several European cities saw increases during the first half of the
year, according to Hogg Robinson Group's 2010 six-month hotel survey, which it
released on Thursday. Rates in the Middle East, however, declined significantly
compared with 2009 levels.
Rates in major U.S. cities—including New York, Chicago and
Washington, D.C.—changed little from the previous year, according to the
survey, which combines industry intelligence and actual room nights booked by
HRG U.K. clients from January through June. Rates were up slightly in Boston in
Los Angeles, but rates in San Francisco dropped 9 percent, the largest drop in
the region.
In Europe, rates grew by 13 percent in Stockholm, by 7
percent in Zurich, by 5 percent in Geneva and by 1 percent in London. Rates in
Moscow fell by 12 percent, but for the sixth year in a row it remains the most
expense city in the world, according to the survey.
"A majority of the cities surveyed, although not yet in
positive growth, certainly recorded an improvement in performance," HRG
director of global hotel relations Margaret Bowler said in a statement. "The
challenge now facing hoteliers is to increase rates in line with demand to
pre-recession levels, something which many forecasters believe will not happen
until 2012 at the earliest."
Rates fell the furthest overall in the Middle East, with
United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar and Oman all seeing double-digit percentage
declines. Rates in Abu Dhabi plummeted by 26 percent, and rates in Dubai fell
by 12 percent.
Outside of Moscow, the most expensive cities for hotels in
the world are Geneva, which was the sixth-most expensive last year, and Hong
Kong, the 10th most expensive last year. New York and Washington
were the only two U.S. cities among the world's top 10 most expensive, ranked
fifth and sixth, respectively.
Bowler said that the average length of stay for corporate
travelers at hotels has increased by 9 percent compared with 2009, indicating
that travel policies have begun to relax. She cautioned, however, that such
negotiating points as last room availability and rate-inclusive food, Internet
access and other amenities could become more difficult for buyers.
"It is inevitable as the industry recovers that yield
management will come back into play, and suppliers will seek to unbundle
further their pricing to gain maximum revenues," Bowler said. "Even
in the current market, certain cities are achieving high occupancy levels on
peak nights, and HRG continues to advise clients to secure sufficient
allocation in high-volume locations."