travel
Global hotel prices rose slightly in first half of 2015, says report
Average hotel prices around the world rose slightly by 1% in the first half of 2015. – AFP/Relaxnews pic, September 3, 2015.Asia represented the best value destination for travellers in the first half of 2015 when it came to hotel accommodations, while room rates in North America were the most expensive.
That's according to online booking site Hotels.com, which released a new report after tracking the prices that travellers paid for their accommodations in the first half of the year.
In the 2015 edition of their annual Hotel Price Index, number crunchers found that globally, the average price of a hotel room rose slightly to one percent between January and June.
Leading the charge is North America, where conventional hotel room rates recorded a 4% rise compared to 2014, driving up the global average.
At the other end of the spectrum, travellers staying in Asia were more likely to save a few pennies, with hotel rates recording a three percent drop.
In other parts of the world, hotel room prices rose 1% in the Caribbean, Latin America and the Pacific, while Europe and the Middle East fell one percent.
A closer look at some of the more popular destinations around the world also revealed that travellers paid less for their accommodations in cities like New York, London, Paris and Rome.
Price drops in New York are attributed to the current boom in boutique hotels rising in Brooklyn and Queens, while US tourists have currency fluctuations – the strong dollar and flagging euro – to thank for the seven percent price drop recorded in London and the 16 percent decrease seen in Paris and Rome.
And with a 24% drop in hotel prices in Kuala Lumpur, the Malaysian metropolis was one of the best bargain destinations this year, along with Hong Kong and Seoul which saw decreases of 16% and 13% respectively.
Here are the cities that saw the biggest price drops around the world for US travellers:
1. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 24%
2. Istanbul, Turkey 17%
3. Rome, Italy 16%
4. Florence, Italy, 16%
5. Paris, France 16%
6. Hong Kong 16%
7. Panama City, Panama 13%
8. Copenhagen, Denmark, 13%
9. Tel Aviv, Israel 13%
10. Seoul, South Korea 13%. – AFP/Relaxnews, September 3, 2015.
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