UK hotels hotting up this summer with 10% rise in domestic bookings - Edinburgh is top August Bank Holiday destination -

The hot summer has been a winner for United Kingdom hotels with a reported 10% increase in domestic hotel bookings this summer of 2006 (compared to 2005), according to online hotel provider HotelClub.net (www.hotelclub.net). UK destinations made up 38% of hotel bookings by UK holidaymakers this summer.

London hotels (http://www.hotelclub.net/hotel.reservations/London.htm) have reaped the biggest rewards of all with a hotel booking increase of 17% on summer 2005. A third of all UK domestic hotel bookings were for the sizzling capital in June and July this year, followed by Edinburgh with 6% of bookings and Manchester and Heathrow Airport with 5% apiece.

Despite this year’s heatwave the majority of UK holidaymakers were still lured abroad this summer. The traditional Brit summer holiday favourites of Spain, France and Italy respectively made up the top three overseas destinations this summer, as they did in 2005. Bookings to Germany nearly doubled this summer compared to 2005, which HotelClub.net puts down to the World Cup effect (www.fifa.com). Germany moved up from the sixth most popular overseas destination this summer to fifth.

Bucking the trend towards a recent increase in long-haul travel the only long-haul destination in the top ten this summer was Australia (4th). The US, New Zealand and Thailand have all been replaced this summer by European destinations – Ireland (7th), Portugal (9th) and Belgium (10th).

HotelClub.net’s Top Ten Destinations**

Summer 2006 - Summer 2005
1. UK - UK
2. Spain - Spain
3. France - France
4. Italy - Italy
5. Australia - Australia
6. Germany - United States
7. Ireland - Germany
8. Netherlands - Netherlands
9. Portugal - New Zealand
10. Belgium - Thailand

With the great August Bank Holiday getaway looming, the most popular destination for the last holiday weekend of the summer is Edinburgh, followed by Barcelona and Rome.

HotelClub.net’s Top Ten August Bank Holiday Destinations*
1. Edinburgh
2. Barcelona
3. Rome
4. Glasgow
5. London
6. Madrid
7. York
8. Paris
9. Venice
10. New York

“It’s been a truly sizzling summer, and we’ve had the World Cup, so no wonder more UK holidaymakers have chosen to stay at home this year. It also just goes to show what a huge effect such a huge sporting occasion has on holiday habits – we’ve seen a definite increase in interest in Germany. The decrease in long-haul travel isn’t surprising when the weather has been so good at home – again the World Cup factor probably came into play with more holidaymakers leaving it until after the tournament finished to book their summer holiday and so not jetting off so far. I’ve no doubt we’ll see this trend revert back again come the Autumn,” said Chloe Lim, Director of Global Marketing, HotelClub.

HotelClub.net (http://www.hotelclub.net/hotel.reservations/) offers over 21,000 hotel accommodation choices in 2,500 cities and 104 countries worldwide. HotelClub.net has over 1.4 million consumer ratings and reviews that provide independent advice on each hotel.

*www.HotelClub.net Booking Statistics based on Check in dates Friday 25 – Monday 28 August 2006
**www.HotelClub.net Bookings Statistics June and July 2006