NY is top destination but Istanbul is hot
New York is still the Big Apple, leading the global list of favorites for a big night out, followed by Vegas, London, and Paris, says the new Hotel Price Index from Hotels.com. But Las Vegas was the top destination overall.
While cost is important, though, more than half of the travelers surveyed chose free Wi-Fi as their number-one criteria in choosing a hotel, even on leisure stays, and two thirds chose it as the amenity they wish would become standard at all hotels in 2013.
US international travelers most often headed to London, Paris, and Rome, but the rising star on the list was Istanbul, which jumped from the number 33 spot to the 19th.
Island destinations were the most expensive. The most expensive countries, with average daily rates over $375, were all islands (the Maldives, French Polynesia, the Seychelles, Turks and Caicos, and Anguilla), as were eight of the 10 most expensive cities.
California’s Big Sur, however, ranked as the most expensive city overall, with an average daily rate of $771.
The average price of a hotel room around the world rose by 3% during 2012 compared with the previous year, slower than the 4% rise in 2011 and still below the 2007 peak and just ahead of 2005, the survey says.
Prices fell slightly in 2012 in Europe and the Middle East, but rose in the Caribbean, North America, and the Pacific.
Inbound travelers spending the most money in the US, meanwhile, were visitors from Japan and South Africa, while travelers from Greece, Switzerland, Portugal, and Italy decreased their hotel spend this year.
For those seeking luxury at affordable prices, Warsaw, Poland, led the list of Top 10 Cities with the Best Five-Star Room Rates, with an ADR of just $125, followed by Marrakech, Morocco, at $162.
In his preface to the report, Expedia Global Lodging Group president David Roche predicted growth in international travel, especially to Asia. The Asia/Pacific region added twice as many rooms as Europe in 2012, and will account for 40% of the world’s new builds in 2013, according to Smith Travel Research, he said. China, meanwhile, plans to build 70 new airports in the next few years.
The full survey is available at http://www.hotel-price-index.com/2013/spring/.
Cheryl
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