London hotel revenue per booking will increase nearly +400 percent for the royal wedding weekend, according to Pegasus Solutions.

Published: 29 Apr 2011

London hotel revenue per booking will increase nearly +400 percent for the royal wedding weekend, according to Pegasus Solutions.

The company’s special edition of The Pegasus View will address the impact of the royal wedding on London hotels’ average daily rate (ADR), length of stay (LOS) and revenue per booking, pulling information from bookings made through travel agents and by travelers themselves..

Impact

Forward-looking data shows net average revenue per booking over prior year rising as high as +383.7 percent on April 30, +215.1 percent on the preceding weekend, and +210.9 percent for the post-wedding weekend. Citing both the build-up to the royal wedding and the Easter Holiday, Pegasus is also reporting rate increases of +134 percent over 2010 for the weekend of the nuptials. Length of stay shows triple-digit percentage increases over prior year in the two days after the ceremony, with increases of +71.4 percent the weekend before and +90.2 percent the weekend after.

“We’re seeing a pre- and after-party effect for the wedding that has the makings of a windfall for London hotels,” said Mike Kistner, chief executive officer of Pegasus Solutions.

Domestic and international travellers either came early or are staying on through the days and week after the wedding to continue the experience. The resulting combination of higher rates and longer stays means total revenue for each stay will increase by triple-digit percentages over last year the weekends before, during and after the wedding takes place, explained Kistner.

Combined global distribution system (GDS) and alternative distribution system (ADS) bookings for each weekend in April demonstrated escalating double-digit percentage ADR increases. Additionally, bookings made through April 21 for future arrivals showed ADR increasing nearly +90 percent the day of the wedding, peaking on Saturday, April 30 with a jump of +134 percent.

Most inbound travel to London for the event is domestic, with travellers from the US comprising the second highest source of bookings. Pegasus is reporting France and Germany as the next highest sources of international travellers for the events in London.