UK hotels are the ones booked most in advance: SiteMinder

Cost-of-living pressures have prompted long-lead summer booking trend

The UK is attracting plenty of summer travel interest this year, with the country’s hotels nabbing the longest booking window when compared to other destination in the Northern Hemisphere, according to SiteMinder.

A report released by the world’s largest open hotel commerce platform revealed that the average lead time for reservations at UK hotels this summer is 10 days longer than the Northern Hemisphere average.

SiteMinder’s Hotel Booking Trends - Summer 2024 Edition studies hotel reservations made for stays between June and August, in 10 of the largest tourism markets within the Northern Hemisphere, including the UK, as well as Austria, Canada, France, Italy, Mexico, Portugal, Spain and the US.

Within the UK, the data shows that international travellers are a key driver of the leading, 150-day booking window, with guests from abroad set to make up 41% of the country’s hotel arrivals this summer, compared to 32% in 2023.

It suggests that the average daily rate (ADR) has increased marginally by 2%, from £254 last season to £259 this year. The marginal rise is below the near 8% increase in ADR recorded across Europe.

Further to this, it indicates that the country’s hotels will experience the shortest length of stay among major Northern Hemisphere markets this summer.

Guests will average stays of 1.68 nights which, while slightly longer than the 1.64-night stays recorded in 2023, are roughly half the length of the average in Portugal (3.28 nights) where the longest stays will be this summer. 

SiteMinder’s Vice President for Ecosystem and Strategic Partnerships, James Bishop, said the findings signalled an exciting summer ahead for the UK market.

“Confident travellers, more than 40% of whom are from abroad, have made their summer bookings further in advance in spite of ongoing cost of living concerns, which is a good sign for the UK hotel industry,” said Bishop.

He added that despite the positive data, the spike in demand isn’t being maximised to its full potential by many hotel businesses.

“Among hoteliers, software adoption has ramped throughout the country ahead of the summer season, which is pleasing. However, we continue to witness a significant opportunity, particularly outside of major cities, for properties to embrace technology more fully. By doing so, UK businesses can ensure they are best set up to maximise the demand spike that summer is set to bring, particularly throughout July and August, which have historically been the country’s busiest months.”