Month: February 2019

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Leonardo Hotels open property in Southampton

Jurys Inn and Leonardo Hotels UK and Ireland has opened its newest property, Leonardo Royal Hotel Southampton Grand Harbour.

The property features 173 rooms and suites, as well as Southampton’s only Marco Pierre White Steakhouse Bar & Grill, which will maintain its place at the hotel. Meanwhile, the newly named Royal Bar will offers al fresco dining on its terrace during the warmer months. The hotel also has 13 meeting and event spaces, including the Mayflower function room, which holds up to 500 people.

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Conference and meeting venues urged to take part in UKCAMS 2019

Conference and meeting venues are being urged to take part in the 2019 UK Conference and Meeting Survey (UKCAMS), now in its 26th year.

Sponsored by VisitBritain, the UKCAMS 2019 report is scheduled for publication in June and has a specific focus on the value and volume of the market and the performance of meeting venues. It also highlights key market trends identified by venues.

The 2018 research found that the conference and meetings sector was worth an estimated £18.1 billion to the UK economy, with some 1.29 million meetings taking place in 2017.

Kerrin MacPhie, head of business events at VisitBritain, said: “We are pleased to be supporting the Conference and Meeting Survey to enhance our understanding of the work and activity undertaken by UK venues in the international business events market. We are also keen on using the survey to discover how UK venues and destinations are performing in securing international events.

“Industry initiatives such as this are great for encouraging as many UK venues to get involved in contributing to the research, which helps to ensure Britain remains a competitive destination in the global business events marketplace.”

The 2019 survey asks UK venues to provide data on their conference and meeting business during the calendar year 2018. It includes questions on the number of events hosted, rates achieved, event duration and size, client type, levels of residential and non-residential business, origins of business, and investment plans. UKCAMS 2019 also includes a section on the targeting and securing of international events by UK venues.

Participating venues will receive a complimentary, personalised summary report enabling them to benchmark their performance against other comparable venues. The research is being carried out by Tony Rogers of Tony Rogers Conference & Event Services and Richard Smith of RJS Associates via an online survey.

Tony Rogers said: “The UKCAMS research has a proven track record as a source of reliable and robust information and market intelligence. It helps venues and destinations, as well as other industry stakeholders, to understand the latest and emerging trends in order to target their marketing and investment decisions to greatest effect. UKCAMS also plays a key role in highlighting the significance and value of the conference and meetings sector to the national economy.”

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Good profitability for hotels in UK and Europe during 2018

UK

There was a second consecutive year of growth from hotels in the UK, which showed a 6.7% increase in profit per room. This resulted in a 1.6% year on year gross operating profit increase, with rooms, food and beverage increasing in profitability although Leisure, Conference and Banqueting showed a decline.

Hotels’ overheads were up by 3.3% and one of the impacts was the cost of utilities and labour. The UK hotel market is seen to be strong, despite Brexit.

Growth in London was slower with hotels recording a 3.6% profit increase per room in 2018. In the first quarter of the year there was a decline, but the market improved from May onwards.

Europe

December was a poor month for hotels in Europe, however, overall operating profit per room in 2018 was up by 9.2%. This was the second consecutive year of gains.

The best performing destination was Vienna which saw a 24.2% increase in revenue per room, compared with 2017. Paris achieved good profits for the first 11 months of the year, but the ‘yellow vests’ protests meant that visitors in December were down as many businesses and tourist attractions were closed.

For more information about hotel profitability visit www.hotstats.com

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Manor of Groves Hotel – Good to know…

Manor of Groves is set in 150 acres of stunning grounds and golf course, with plenty of spaces available for team building, BBQs or your own mini festival! It is only 20 minutes from Stansted Airport and in easy reach of the M11 and M25.

The property has two sister hotels – Shendish Manor near Hemel Hempstead and Regency Park Hotel near Newbury. Also opening in April is a new hotel, the Atrium Hotel Heathrow, the venue will have over 600 bedrooms and a function capacity over 500.

The leisure and gym facilities,  which are complimentary for residents to use during their stay has recently been refurbished and features, a 20m pool, sauna, steam room and jacuzzi plus a 3-floor gym including a group cycle studio.

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Olympia London redevelopment

A £1bn project to turn Olympia London into a world-leading cultural hub has been approved by planners. Work will begin from next year, with the first tenants moving in by 2023.

Permission has been granted to transform the 132-year-old exhibition centre into an arts, entertainment, events and creative business quarter which will feature;

  • A 1,500-seat theatre
  • A 1,000-seat performing arts venue
  • Two hotels
  • A 18,580 sqm logistics centre
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Despite uncertainty, mia reveals delegate day rate growth up ten per cent

Meetings venues across the UK have overcome a challenging economy to experience a 10 per cent rise in delegate day rates (DDR) over the last four years, according to figures gathered by the Meetings Industry Association (mia).

Despite the ongoing economic uncertainty and a slowdown in the rate of GDP growth, the average DDR among mia members rose by 2 per cent in 2018 to £43.48, continuing the steady upward trend noted since miaTouchstone started tracking rates in 2015.

The outlook for the year ahead is also promising, according to results of the miaTouchstone survey. Overall enquiry levels were up by over 10 per cent in 2018 indicating the industry’s positive growth could continue into 2019.

Venues in the South West and East Midlands were among those with the highest rate rises. Both regions saw an increase of 20 per cent in their DDR rates in 2018 while residential rates rose around 25 per cent

Average 24-hour residential rates reported by the mia member venues to the online benchmarking tool also rose by 2 per cent in 2018 compared to those in 2017 with the latter months showing a bigger uplift.

While rates rose, so too did the average number of meetings. Despite an immediate drop off in activity levels following the EU Referendum in 2016, the industry bounced back to experience 12 per cent growth in 2018.

Mia chief executive Jane Longhurst said: “The miaTouchstone results indicate that 2018 was a good year for most participating mia members. To see growth in many areas, particularly DDR, is testament to the hard work of mia venue members in providing an excellent service to their customers and is especially noteworthy against the backdrop of a challenging economy.

“It is also heartening to see that confidence in the business meetings and events market is high for the year ahead, although everyone is aware that the UK’s proposed exit from the EU at the end of March could change that.

“MiaTouchstone’s review of enquiry levels is always a key indicator of prospects going forward, particularly in the current volatile climate, and this will be a key measure for mia members to watch over the next six months as the UK economy adjusts to a ‘post-Brexit’ world.”

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Grand Connaught Rooms reveal £700k makeover

De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms, located in Covent Garden and part of De Vere’s portfolio of event destinations and country estate hotels, have revealed the results of a £700,000 refurbishment of its meetings and events spaces, bringing them in line with the company’s innovative Smart Space meetings concept. The investment in De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms is part of De Vere’s wider £50m refurbishment of its portfolio.

The property features De Vere’s innovative meetings concept, Smart Space, which comprises nine service features designed to offer a highly responsive, personalised meetings and events service. The service includes everything from a live availability booking service to truly tech-savvy support, with up to 1GB super-fast Wi-Fi, interactive displays and an on-site team of friendly experts to help overcome any tech issues a client may face. This service is available in all event spaces throughout De Vere Grand Connaught Rooms, including the Grand Hall.

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Curio Collection by Hilton to debut in Austria

Hilton has announced the opening of Grand Tirolia Hotel Kitzbuhel. The property joins Curio Collection by Hilton and marks the brand’s entry into Austria.

The hotel will be a part of the exclusive collection of independent hotels and resorts celebrated for their individuality, the property, a private oasis in the Austrian Alps, joins more than 60 one-of-a-kind Curio Collection by Hilton hotels around the world, including 11 in Europe.

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New hotel in Copenhagen located on historic site

Danish hotel chain Brøchner Hotels has opened a new four-star boutique hotel in the former Carlsberg brewery buildings. Hotel Ottilia in Carlsberg City District has 155 rooms and conference facilities for up to 200 people, it also has a spa, rooftop terrace overlooking Copenhagen, Italian restaurant Tramonto, and as you might expect, a bar.

Hotel Ottilia invites guests to stay in an iconic location in the Danish capital, with the Carlsberg City District synonymous with one of Denmark’s most famous exports – Carlsberg beer. The beer was brewed there from 1847-2008 in historic and now listed buildings.

The hotel is located next to Copenhagen Zoo, the Meat Packing District and Vesterbro, known for its vivid cultural scene a well as top bars and restaurants.

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Nobu Hotel Warsaw due for 2020 opening

Nobu Hospitality has announced its continued global expansion with a new property in Warsaw, Poland. Nobu Hotel Warsaw will be situated in the heart of the historic city and will have 120-rooms, expansive meeting and event spaces, fitness centre and signature Nobu Restaurant, it will be an integrated mix of luxurious hotel and energised living spaces.

Nobu Hotel’s first Polish property will open in the first half of next year and occupy a new building located at Wilcza Street, the new building will see a transformative architectural design for Warsaw, blending with the original Rialto building.