Global Hotel Prices Rise to Levels Not Seen Since 2006

Hotel prices increase by 2 per cent through first half of 2013, now approaching the same level as before the financial crisis, according to the latest Hotels.com Hotel Price Index

TORONTO, Sept. 10, 2013 /CNW/ - The average price of a hotel room around the world rose by 2 per cent during the first six months of 2013 compared with the same period the previous year, according to the latest Hotels.com® Hotel Price Index™ (HPI™). The rise, although relatively small, maintained a trend of slowly increasing rates seen since the start of 2010, with average prices now close to their 2006 levels, before the global financial crisis began.

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Set at 100 in 2004, the HPI tracks real prices that hotel guests actually paid for their accommodation around the world. The Index for the first six months of 2013 stands at 111, eight points lower than its peak in the same period of 2007 and just 11 points higher than at its launch.

Latin America registered its strongest result for more than two years with a 7 per cent increase in hotel prices. Helped by the strengthening U.S. economy, North America and the Caribbean outperformed the global average with increases of 3 per cent and 5 per cent respectively.

In the Pacific, the slump in the Australian mineral resources industry led to a fall in the number of business travellers in Western Australia particularly and weaker hotel price growth of 1 per cent. With the Eurozone only just officially out of recession, hotel prices in Europe and the Middle East remained sluggish, also recording a 1 per cent gain.

David Roche, President Hotels.com, said: "There is no doubt that European hotel prices have been some of the most badly affected since the economic fallout in 2008/2009. The fact that the Eurozone recorded growth for the first two quarters of 2013 is evidence that the economic crisis is easing, although not yet completely over. Many of the destinations worst hit by the downturn have seen hotel prices stabilize, with some experiencing healthy rises."

Asia was the only region to see a fall in prices by 2 per cent in the first half of 2013. Individual cities in the region performed well but the depreciation in value of the Yen and the Rupee, coupled with a fall in the number of inbound visitors to China contributed to this result. However, outbound travel from China has not yet been impacted by slowdown in the country's economy and continued to boom.

"Another phenomenon impacting global hotel prices is the huge and rapid rise in number of Chinese international travellers," said Roche. "China has officially become the world's largest outbound tourism market with an estimated 83 million overseas trips made by Chinese citizens, according to the China Tourism Academy 2013 report. The UN World Tourism Organization also announced that Chinese travellers spent US$102 billion on international tourism in 2012, 40 per cent more than in 2011, overtaking the more established tourism markets of Germany and the USA. International travel remains an aspiration for many, especially younger travellers with the disposable income to travel abroad."

Editor's Note: Canadian-specific results are available at http://www.hotel-price-index.com and will be formally released September 12, 2013.

About the HPI™

The HPI is a biannual report that looks at hotel prices in cities all around the world. The data is based on bookings made through the Hotels.com website and the prices listed are the actual prices paid by travellers - not advertised rates. The report compares prices paid in the first half of 2012 with those paid in the first half of 2013.

About Hotels.com^®

Hotels.com (also known in Canada as Hotels.ca) is a leading online accommodation booking brand. Through the Expedia, Inc. global network of websites, Hotels.com, LP connects travellers with approximately 220,000 properties around the world, ranging from international chains and all-inclusive resorts to local favourites and bed & breakfasts, together with all the information needed to book the perfect stay. Hotels.com, LP benefits from one of the largest hotel contracting teams in the industry, obtaining the best rates for its customers, and offers frequent sales, special deals and promotions. There are more than 7 million Guest Reviews on the websites from users who have actually stayed in the hotels to ensure customers can make an informed choice when booking. Through Hotels.com, LP's industry-leading loyalty program Welcome Rewards^[TM], customers can earn a free* night for every 10 nights stayed at more than 85,000 hotels. Under its Price Match Guarantee†, if a customer can find the same deal for less on a prepaid hotel, Hotels.com, LP will refund the difference. Travellers can book online or by contacting one of the multilingual call centers. Special apps for mobile phones and tablets can also be downloaded at http://www.hotels.com/deals/mobile_app/ enabling customers to book on the go with access to 20,000 last minute deals. Hotels.com publishes an award-winning twice-yearly review of international hotel room price trends called the Hotels.com Hotel Price Index™, which is now produced in 31 individual country editions, with North American data available at http://www.hotel-price-index.com. Follow Hotels.com on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/Hotels.comCA, on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/hotelsdotcomca and on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/hotelsdotcom. More Hotels.com news is available at: http://press.hotels.com/en-ca/. Hotels.com, LP is part of Expedia, Inc., the largest online travel company in the world with an extensive portfolio that includes some of the world's best-known brands.

Hotels.com, Hotel Price Index, HPI, Finding You the Perfect Place and the Hotels.com logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Hotels.com, LP. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners. © 2013 Hotels.com, LP. All rights reserved. CST # 2083949-50

*Your free night is good at any Welcome Rewards eligible property. The maximum value of your free night is the average daily rate of your ten (10) nights. Your free night does not include taxes and fees.

† Price match guarantee on hotel bookings. If you find a lower price on exactly the same stay elsewhere, we'll match it or let you cancel your booking without a penalty.  Terms and conditions apply.

SOURCE: Hotels.com

Canada press contacts: Lauern Wasley, energi PR for Hotels.com, Phone: [phone], Email: [email protected] , Twitter: @energiPR ; Taylor L. Cole, APR, Hotels.com North America, Phone: [phone], Email: [email protected], Twitter: @TravelwithTLC