Prices for hotel rooms are growing

According to this report in 2011 the global room rate growth was amounted to 4% compared with the previous year, which is partly explained by the recovery of business travel sphere leading to the increase in demand for hotel services. Thus, it can be said that the sphere of hotel services began to revive from the recession that began in 2008 after the bankruptcy of the investment giant Lehman Brothers, which started the protracted global financial crisis.

According to the actual figures by region, only in Asia the average room rate fell by 2%, which is explained by the influence of the nuclear disaster at the Fukushima plant in Japan and massive flooding in Thailand, which affected a significant part of the country. In all other regions the rate increased: by 8% in the Pacific, by 5% in North America, by 4% in Latin America, by 2% in the Caribbean and 2% in Europe and the Middle East.

David Roche, the president of the Hotels.com company said: "The hotel sector is an excellent barometer of the world economy as a whole. Prices are rising because demand in rooms is growing, which indicates the increase of consumption level both in business and private sectors. Local features due to political unrest of the last year, natural disasters and fluctuations in currency exchange rates, of course, have a significant impact on prices, but in general there is a tendency for growth in this market. "

Mr. Roche also noted that currently the average level of prices for hotels around the world is still lower than 2005 figure, so there is now a great opportunity to discover new countries. Hotel Price Index report can help consumers of travel services to navigate in the level of prices in some regions and countries and use its budget for recreation and traveling effectively.