Tourists benefit from reduced hotel room rates and the weak pound

LONDON - Reduced accommodation costs combined with the weakening pound are allowing tourists, especially those from the Eurozone, to keep hold of more of their travel budget. According to price comparisons by HOTEL INFO, the international booking portal, London is now even losing its status as the most expensive capital in Europe.

Hotel guests can now look forward to lower room rates in certain UK cities. Many foreign travellers are also benefiting from the year-on-year decrease in sterling. For instance, in London, the cost of accommodation in sterling decreased by 2.36% to around £109, with room seekers from the Eurozone able to save almost 10% compared with the previous year. In Manchester, hotel prices fell on average by 9.43% to £93.65, being over 16% in terms of the euro.

However, accommodation became more expensive in Birmingham and Liverpool. In the second largest UK city, guests had to hand over £83.43, being a 6.63% increase. In the northwestern port city of Liverpool, the increase was almost 5%, rising to £77.27. However, compared to last year, guests from the Eurozone were able to preserve their travel budgets in both cities, due to the ailing pound.

Average hotel prices in GBP for selected UK cities *
(Average price per room night)

City	March 2016	March 2015	Cf. March 2016 with March 2015 in %
1.	London	108.98	111.62	-2.36
2.	Manchester	93.65	103.40	-9.43
3.	Birmingham	83.43	78.24	6.63
4.	Liverpool	77.27	73.76	4.75
5.	Edinburgh	71.18	72.74	- 2.14

Average hotel prices in Euros for selected UK cities* 
(Average price per room night)

City	March 2016	March 2015	Cf. March 2016 with March 2015 in %
1.	London	139.59	154.45	-9.62
2.	Manchester	119.95	143.07	-16.16
3.	Birmingham	106.86	108.26	-1.29
4.	Liverpool	98.97	102.06	-3.03
5.	Edinburgh	91.17	100.65	-9.41

Bern most expensive capital in Europe

On an international comparison, the tranquil city of Bern has become the most expensive capital in Europe. With an increase in hotel costs to £116.62, the Swiss city claimed the European top spot, particularly since London came in with room rates of £109, being more than 2% cheaper.

The City of Love also has a heart for tourists, with rates of £92.54. Parisian hoteliers are preserving their guests' travel budgets with around 1% lower accommodation costs. Moscow hotel rooms were almost 10% less expensive for UK guests, falling to £73.30 due to the decrease in the ruble. Three years ago, hotel guests were paying almost twice this figure. However, in most other European cities, UK travellers had to dig deeper into their pockets due to the weakness of the pound compared with the previous year.

Results of European hotel price comparisons* 
(Average prices in GBP per room night)

City	March 2016	March 2015	Cf. March 2016 with March 2015 in %
1.	Bern	116.62	108.72	7.27
2.	London	108.98	111.62	-2.36
3.	Copenhagen	108.07	94.93	13,84
4.	Stockholm	105.33	100.18	5.14
5.	Oslo	101.99	92.93	9.74
6.	Brussels	101.45	93.73	8.24
7.	Helsinki	99.93	93.01	7.43
8.	Amsterdam	95.60	82.26	16.21
9.	Paris	92.54	93.32	-0.83
10.	Dublin	90.96	72.85	24.87
11.	Moscow	73.30	80.69	-9.15
12.	Belgrade	72.63	58.39	24.38
13.	Berlin	68.99	62.51	10.38
14.	Vienna	67.46	63.97	5.47
15.	Madrid	64.63	59.25	9.08

* Currency conversions are based on average rates for the relevant month; rounding differences may occur