February 2008 VOL. 2

Did you Know?

A UK budget hotel will be built, opened or converted every three working days for the next 20 years, according to a new report from Melvin Gold Consulting, a UK-based hospitality consultant. The budget hotel sector is set to treble by 2027, growing up to 10 times faster than the rest of the hotel industry.

The UK hotel supply report, commissioned by Travelodge, is the most comprehensive and accurate assessment of the hotel market to date. The study recorded the total number of accommodation rooms in the UK at 716,500, with the budget sector currently accounting for 85,665 rooms or 12 percent of market.

With the total hotel market forecasted to continue to grow at around one percent in each year for the next two decades, the budget sector - growing at 10 percent for the next five years and 5 percent for the following five years - will be the primary growth driver of the accommodation market. The budget sector is expected to grow to 225,400 rooms representing 26.8 percent of the market by 2027.

The study also concluded that the "traditional" UK hotel sector will contract over the next 20 years as consumers seek low cost accommodation and sub standard, unbranded hotels are converted to residential or other commercial buildings.