Hospitality industry consultant Simon Scarborough, a former manager of the 802-room Tower Thistle and general manager of the Flemings Hotel in London’s Mayfair, suggests travel buyers have work to do.
“Hotel pricing policies are all about supply and demand, and while the supply side is more or less fixed, there is plenty of scope for flexibility on the demand side,” he suggests.
“The wage bill for business travellers on £50,000 a year is roughly £25 an hour, and while they might prefer to stay as close as possible to their ultimate destination, in terms of the total cost of a trip, that may not always make financial sense.
“Add the extra travel cost to the value of his or her time, and if the out-of-town property still works out cheaper, the old ‘location, location, location’ argument falls flat on its face.”