Despite US government shutdown, hotel prices Up in many major US cities

DUSSELDORF, GERMANY – This month, hotel search trivago reports that the price for an average double room in the US costs $183, down 10% from last year’s October average ($203). Despite this, however, hotel prices in many major US cities continue to steadily increase. This October, Minneapolis sees a 20% increase from last year, Seattle -a 15% increase and Salt Lake City- a 26% year-over-year hotel price increase. October is a great time for finding hotel deals in major European destinations such as Barcelona, Berlin and Amsterdam. These are the findings of the trivago Hotel Price Index (tHPI) prepared each month by hotel search trivago.com.

Major US cities seeing growth year-over-year and month-over-month
Despite the turmoil caused by the US government shutdown and the 10% overall national decrease in hotel prices over the year, many of the top cities analyzed by trivago see a significant hotel price increase this October. One such city is Minneapolis, which saw a 20% increase this year (at $231) in comparison last October ($193). This price also represents a 32% increase from last month (at $175). Additionally, Seattle saw 15% y-o-y growth (from $177 to $203), while Salt Lake City saw 26% growth (from $110 to $139). Hotel prices in Texan cities Dallas and Houston are up 12% from last year, with prices reaching $150 and $145, respectively, for the month of October. Washington D.C. ($327), Miami ($170) and Boston ($408) all saw very significant price increases from last month—at 29%, 30% and 23%, respectively.

Halloween destination price report – October 2013
Hotel prices in Halloween party central, Santa Barbara, CA see an 11% increase this October (at $241), when compared to October 2012 ($218). Of little surprise, New York City is the most expensive popular Halloween destination analyzed by trivago, with a steep average of $442 per night this October, a price that shows virtually no change over last year’s October average (at $441). New Orleans has always been a popular city in which to celebrate the spooky holiday. This month, the land of Creole Voodoo sees its hotel prices rising 31% this month ($218), in comparison to last month ($167).

October Hotel Deals in Europe
Travelers headed to Europe will find hotel deals in popular destinations across the continent this October. An average hotel price in Berlin costs $135, down 12% from last month. Monthly drops are also found in Barcelona ($200, down 13%), Milan ($206, down 16%), Munich ($235, down 16%), and Amsterdam ($218, down 17%). Always wanted to see Florence? Now is a good time, as the Tuscan capital was the major European city with the largest year-over-year decrease in hotel price, falling 28% from last year’s October average ($307) - to $222 this month.