Global hotel prices drop 12 percent : Mumbai tops the list with biggest fall of 41%

Mumbai, 25h March, 2009: The average price of a hotel room around the world fell by
12 per cent last year, according to the latest Hotel Price Index™ from Hotels.com®, the global hotel specialist. The Hotel Price Index looked at hotel prices* for the period October to December 2008, compared to the same period the year before.

Hotel prices in North America fell by the greatest extent - down 12 per cent - with Europe dropping 10 per cent in Q4 2008 compared to the year before. On average hotel prices today are only one percent higher than they were five years ago.

The Asia Pacific region recorded its first year-on-year drop in hotel room prices since 2004. This drop was comparatively small, falling by only two per cent overall, however with substantial drops in many large Asian cities including Hong Kong, Singapore, Beijing and Mumbai.

Mumbai topped the list of biggest falls in hotel prices around the world, with a drop of 41%, in the wake of a sharp fall in demand for the city’s hotels following the terrorist attacks. Other cities to experience substantial declines were Manila, down by 32%, Sydney (-22%), Seoul (-20%), Singapore (-14%) and Beijing (-13%).

Asian cities recording moderate drops in hotel prices include Bangkok (-3%); New Delhi
(-4%); Kuala Lumpur (-5%) and Tokyo (-6%).

Destinations with generally more expensive hotels have shown significant price falls as well, including Moscow (-17%), New York (-22%), Paris (-10%) and Dubai (-8%).

The Hotels.com Hotel Price Index tracks the real prices paid per hotel room rather than advertised rates. It is based on prices actually paid by customers for 68,000 hotels across 12,500 locations around the world. The international scale of Hotels.com (in terms of both customers and destinations) makes the Hotel Price Index one of the most comprehensive benchmarks available.

David Roche, President, Hotels.com Worldwide, says: “The latest Hotel Price Index shows the economic downturn is now affecting hotel prices on all continents. Our report shows that hoteliers around the world are being forced to cut rates to fill their rooms.”

“The good news is that there are many bargains to be had for travellers. This year really will be the ‘year of the deal’,” he said.

Mr Roche said destinations traditionally considered too expensive for many budget - conscious travellers are now offering considerable savings. For example, hotel prices are down in many popular cities such as London, down by 24 per cent, New York 22 per cent and Barcelona, which is down 21 percent, making it an ideal time to visit these favoured destinations.

“For travellers from any part of the world, this is a great time to explore: hotels have not offered such good value since January 2004. The indications are that 2009 will continue to be a good year for travellers,” Mr Roche concluded.