Hotel prices in Athlone fell 17 per cent in the first six months of the year according to the Hotels.com Hotel Price Index. Despite experiencing the steepest price fall in the country, Athlone was still ranked as Ireland’s third most expensive destination with room rates averaging at €97 per night, after Wexford and Kilkenny where room rates are €104.
On a national level, Irish hotel room prices rose 2 per cent in the first six months of the year according to the latest HPI. This is the first time Irish hotel prices have risen in three years indicating signs of recovery in the market. Prior to this, hotel rates had fallen some 35 per cent in the past three years. The average hotel room rate in Ireland is now €81 per night compared to €79 for the same period last year.
The Hotels.com Hotel Price Index is a survey of hotel prices in major city destinations across the world. The HPI is based on bookings made on Hotels.com across 125,000 hotels in 19,000 destinations, and prices shown are those actually paid by customers (rather than advertised rates ) in the first half of 2011 compared to those paid in the same period in 2010.
Focus on the rest of Ireland
The price of a hotel room in Dublin reflected the national trend moving up 2 per cent from €73 to €75. This rise was in part helped by large scale events which increased demand for hotel rooms in the capital such as the Six Nations home rugby matches in March, the State visits in May, the sell-out Take That concert in June, and the 15.6 per cent increase of overseas visitors to Ireland in Q2 2011.
Dublin is now the best value capital city in Western Europe and prices in Dublin are significantly lower than other capital cities such as London (€134 ), Paris (€114 ), and Vienna (€100 ).
Waterford saw the biggest increase in prices and lost its spot as Ireland’s least expensive destination to Limerick. Hotel prices in Waterford increased 31 per cent to €65 while Limerick hotel prices remained unchanged at just €63 per night.
Hotel prices in Cork rose 7 per cent to €80 per night while Galway saw its prices dip by 3 per cent to an average of €96 per night. Cork’s rise in prices can in part, be attributed to the Live at the Marquee Music Series in June of this year which saw visitors travel to the city for the concerts, Queen Elizabeth II’s visit in May as well as major sporting participation events such as the Bord Gáis Energy Cork City Marathon in June.
