Tourist sector buoyant as Scottish hotels benefit from staycations

Hotels north of the Border enjoyed a return to pre-recessionoccupancy and revenue levels as people chose Scotland for theirEaster and bank holiday breaks.Occupancy in Scottish hotels was up7.7 per cent during April compared to the same month last year,according the latest report by accountant and business adviserPKF.England and Wales saw rises of just 1.4 per cent and 3.2 percent respectively, according to the survey of three and four starhotels. Alastair Rae, a partner specialising in real estate andhospitality at PKF, said: "Easter, whilst long awaited, appears tohave had a significant impact on the hospitality sector."Theadditional holiday for the royal wedding at the end of Easter weekencouraged many to take the whole week off and this showed improvedoccupancy across the whole of the UK, but only in Scotland didrevenue also improve substantially."These figures indicate that thesector continues to improve and, indeed, outperform the rest of theUK."There is considerable hope and expectation that the continuedtrend toward staycationing will benefit Scotland greatly thissummer."Rooms yield - the industry measure of revenue - rose 6.8 percent in Scotland year-on-year, but was down 1.9 per cent in Englandand up only 0.4 per cent in Wales.Within Scotland, Edinburgh led theway, with both occupancy levels and revenues soaring by 12.1 percent.Rae said: "Edinburgh remains the jewel in the crown for thesector and the continuing announcement of substantial growth in thehospitality sector in the city is testament to investors' confidencein the market."However, Aberdeen is also bouncing back and Glasgowcontinues to pro-actively attract visitors."Rae said Edinburgh had a"booming" April with numbers not seen since pre-recession days.At 80per cent, the occupancy figure for the capital was actually higherthan April 2007, while room yield was at a very similar level asfour years ago.Occupancy and revenue rose by 3.9 per cent and 3.7per cent respectively in Glasgow. In Aberdeen the figures increasedby 0.4 per cent and 1.6 per cent year-on-year.The extra bank holidayand late Easter meant April this year enjoying considerableadvantages over the same month in 2010, and there were fears thathard pressed consumers might tighten their belts after over-spending during the period.But Colin Paton, chairman of EdinburghHotels Association, said occupancy rates in the capital had improvedfurther in May, with the weak pound encouraging Brits to holidaydomestically and making the UK attractive to European travellers.Hesaid: "There was a concern during April that May would be verytough, but occupancy levels are up slightly, certainly inEdinburgh."Given all the holidays in April, it's very impressivethat May has been so strong."Paton, who runs the Portland Hotelschain, said the internet had changed the leisure market, withcustomers booking late and looking for bargains. He said that priceshad been forced down, even in the capital, but the rise in occupancyrates meant that the average yield per room was still up.MalcolmRoughead, chief executive of VisitScotland, said the figuresreinforced a feeling within the industry that Scottish tourism wasstarting to turn a corner."We're hopeful about the season ahead," hesaid. "It is clear that Scotland still has an enduring appeal forvisitors, in particular the staycation market."