HotelsCombined.com Price Index™ Review of Global Hotel Prices for April 2011

SYDNEY, March 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- HotelsCombined.com has revealed the HotelsCombined.com Price Index™ review of global hotel prices for April 2011. Every month we search and analyze our database of over 2,500,000 hotel deals to identify the biggest hotel destination reductions available over the upcoming month as well as year-on-year falls and rises.

Online HotelsCombined.com Price Index™ Review of Global Hotel Prices for April 2011: http://press.hotelscombined.com/Price-Index/HotelsCombinedHotelPriceIndexApril2011.pdf

Insights

Biggest Price Falls in April 2011 (Month-On-Month)

Cardiff hoteliers had an amazing month in March, but prices will plummet in April (down 28.47%). After struggling through a year of reduced tourism in 2010, the fall from a six-month high of US $153 down to US $109 per room will not come as good news for local hoteliers. Although late spring and summer are considered the best seasons to visit, travelers who book early will find some good deals.

Spring break in the United States substantially boosted tourism in Negril, Jamaica in March. In April, prices will drop a staggering 24% as hoteliers lower their nightly rates back to past levels to compensate for the reduced occupancy.

The German cities of Dusseldorf, Westerland and Nuremberg will all experience large drops in nightly room rates during April. Although a portion of the decline can be attributed to seasonality, German cities have featured prominently in past Hotel Price Indexes, highlighting a general drop in demand for the country.

Biggest Price Falls in April 2011 (Year-On-Year)

Beirut room rates will decline in the coming month by 21.40%. This drop in nightly average rates is most likely related to increasing tensions in the Middle East.

Nightly room rates in the Egyptian capital of Cairo will fall again this month, down 18.54%. This drop is slightly less than March, (down 20.53% YOY). At ITB, an annual travel industry conference held in Germany, Egyptian tourism authorities reassured those in attendance that the country has a strong focus on rebuilding the tourism sector.

Nuremberg (down 19.80%) and Munich (down 19.72%) will be among some of the biggest price falls in April globally. These falling nightly rates further highlight the decreasing demand for German hotels.

Biggest Price Rises in April 2011 (Year-On-Year)

President of Mexico, Felipe Calderon, has declared 2011 the 'Year of Tourism' with government programs in place to boost tourism and has also signed an agreement last month with the leaders of Mexico's tourism industry seeking to position the country as the world's 5th most popular tourist destination by 2018. Statistics indicate that Calderon is on the right track experiencing a year-on-year upswing in demand with the steepest hotel price rise seen in Mexico City up 38.03% to US $81.

Lufthansa will be strengthening its presence in Turkey. As of April 2, 2011 Antalya will be added to the network. We are seeing the effects already with year-on-year hotel prices up 24.70% to US $117.

Oprah Winfrey's much publicized trip to Queensland, Australia seems to be boosting American tourism numbers to the disaster-ravaged state. The Oprah effect on the state's gateway capital, Brisbane, is demonstrating hotel price increases of 22.26% to US $151 year-on-year.

Special Japan report: Consumer Intent Analysis

Using data gathered during the two weeks after the devastating earthquake and subsequent tsunami, HotelsCombined.com has been able to analyze the shift of consumer intention and projected booking patterns in Japan.

Surprisingly, consumers are searching for Kyoto, Nagoya and Osaka more now than in the same two-week period last year. These destinations are located in the south of the country and were the least affected by the tragedy.

Most notably, Narita experienced a gain in consumer popularity of 88%. As Narita Airport is one of the largest in the country, we believe this increase in consumer interest can be attributed to locals as well as overseas visitors booking overnight hotel stays before exiting the region.

The largest decreases in consumer interest can be seen in Tokyo, Yokohama, and Sapporo.

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HotelsCombined.com spokespeople are available as a media resource for expert quotes and hotel industry trend watching. In addition, customized statistical reports about worldwide booking and rate trends can be prepared quickly upon request.

About HotelsCombined.com Price Index™

The HotelsCombined.com Price Index™ is a monthly survey of hotel prices in major city destinations across the world. The international scale of HotelsCombined.com with 2,500,000 hotel deals in 50,000 destinations across 200 countries makes the HotelsCombined.com Price Index™ the most comprehensive benchmark available, incorporating hotel price data direct from hotels and online travel agent websites.

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SOURCE HotelsCombined.com