London 2012 Olympics: Capital hotel bookings weathering the storm

By BRIAN FERGUSON
Published on 04/08/2012 00:00

TOURISM industry leaders claim accommodation bookings in the capital are as strong as ever, despite a bleak last few months.

The Edinburgh Hotels Association said all the evidence was that there had been no noticeable downturn in business, despite the clash with the
Olympics. It said most of the Festival business came from over the Border.

But Colin Paton, head of the Edinburgh Hotels Association, said recent months had suffered from high air fares from overseas, the state of the economy in European markets and the impact of the weather in Scotland on the “staycation” market.

But he added: “From everything I’ve heard, the Festival
period is pretty much as strong as ever.

“It is very reliant on the domestic market and those bookings appear to have held up pretty well. The same cannot be said about the American and European market in recent months, which have been quite badly
affected.”

Meanwhile, the head of Festivals Edinburgh says she is
“extremely optimistic” about fending off competition from the Olympics.

Director Faith Liddell said the main events were likely to generate more international media than normal and ticket sales
appeared to be unaffected.