Hotels in the capital city of the United Kingdom are amongst the three most expensive in Europe according to the latest hotel.info Price Barometer
Nuremberg,  March 2012 – Hotel overnight prices in many international cities have increased since the start of the year. Where hotel guests have to dig deeper in their pockets and in which cities rates have decreased year on year is demonstrated by hotel.info, the free online hotel reservation service with more than 210,000 hotels worldwide. The result:
- Room prices in London have risen by an average of 6.58 %
- Rio de Janeiro has considerably higher accommodation costs during the carnival
The results of the hotel.info Hotel Price Barometer for European capital cities (prices in GBP)*Â
| City | February 2012 | January 2012 | February 2011 | Comparison February 2012 against February 2011 in % | |
| 1. | Moscow | 153.61 | 128.08 | 156.37 | -1.77 |
| 2. | Oslo | 134.63 | 122.50 | 133.22 | 1.06 |
| 3. | London | 132.54 | 119.72 | 124.36 | 6.58 |
| 4. | Stockholm | 127.50 | 118.69 | 136.21 | -6.39 |
| 5. | Helsinki | 115.40 | 100.75 | 110.24 | 4.69 |
| 6. | Copenhagen | 109.63 | 110.19 | 105.70 | 3.72 |
| 7. | Paris | 102.74 | 105.18 | 97.35 | 5.53 |
| 8. | Brussels | 94.55 | 86.16 | 101.97 | -7.27 |
| 9. | Amsterdam | 83.95 | 84.67 | 92.18 | -8.93 |
| 10. | Warsaw | 74.17 | 69.10 | 71.83 | 3.26 |
Moscow is once more the most expensive of all the European capital cities for hotel accommodation. In comparison with the previous year the average hotel cost per night decreased slightly by 2 % to 153.61 GBP. The Norwegian capital Oslo is in second place with134.63 GBP. In London hotel room prices increased by 6.58 % to 132.54 GBP. It is possible that various events such as exhibitions and concerts could have had a positive influence on demand during February. In Warsaw the average increase of more than 3 % could be a precursor of the European Football Championship which will take place in Poland in a few months time.
The results of the hotel.info Hotel Price Barometer comparing other capital and major cities (prices in GBP)
| City | February 2012 | January 2012 | February 2011 | Comparison February 2012 against February 2011 in % | |
| 1. | Sydney | 159.60 | 168.34 | 134.50 | 18.67 |
| 2. | Rio de Janeiro | 157.59 | 162.32 | 129.85 | 21.36 |
| 3. | Tokyo | 147.46 | 140.99 | 144.78 | 1.85 |
| 4. | Singapore | 137.06 | 135.78 | 129.18 | 6.10 |
| 5. | Zurich | 128.62 | 131.42 | 122.08 | 5.36 |
| 6. | New York | 124.83 | 133.15 | 121.78 | 2.50 |
| 7. | Hong Kong | 121.14 | 119.69 | 109.34 | 10.79 |
| 8. | Buenos Aires | 89.88 | 81.43 | 79.61 | 12.90 |
| 9. | Shanghai | 79.40 | 76.25 | 81.29 | -2.33 |
| 10. | Istanbul | 60.01 | 65.51 | 65.50 | -8.37 |
During February hotel guests in Sydney had to really dig deep. Overnight costs increased by an average of 19 % to 159.60 GBP. Rio de Janeiro with an average price of 157.59 GBP and an increase of more than 20 % is in second place. This is not surprising as the city by Sugar Loaf mountain had carnival whereas in 2011 this took place in March. The event attracts over a million visitors each year. However the room prices also increased in other international cities such as Singapore, Hong Kong or Buenos Aires.
* European capital cities with more than 500,000 inhabitants. Currency conversions are based on the average rates for the relevant month.
