Hotels toast good start to the new year

THE Capital's hotels enjoyed improved visitor numbers at the start of the year.

New figures from accountancy firm PKF showed there was a rise in visitor numbers across Scotland which followed a fall before Christmas.

Year-on-year occupancy levels rose 1.1 per cent during January, compared with England where numbers remained static and a 4.6 per cent drop in Wales.

Edinburgh saw occupancy levels rise by 1.2 per cent, Aberdeen rose by 6.1 per cent, but Glasgow fell by 1.8 per cent.

Rooms yield, the industry measure of revenue, was up 4.2 per cent in Scotland but the budget sector continued to be hardest hit, with both occupancy and rooms yield falling for hotels priced below 50.

Alastair Rae, a partner in the real estate and hospitality sector at PKF, said the figures indicate some recovery from the "very poor numbers" caused by the bad weather in December.

He said: "Given that January is traditionally a quiet month for the hospitality sector, occupancy is fairly good for Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow, although the latter's rooms yield remains relatively low.

"Aberdeen continues to benefit from the high oil price which appears to be inducing a mini boom for the city. Given that this price is predicted to rise further, I believe that Aberdeen's hoteliers could be in for a better year if the market remains strong."