LONDON A survey of member hotels of the British Hospitality Association revealed that the foot-and-mouth outbreak is affecting 78% of hotels in England, 91% in Scotland and 95% in Wales. The survey, which queried nearly 500 hotels, reported turnover down by 10% with a 30% drop in forward bookings.
Furthermore, three hotels out of 10 have seen their business decline by more than 25%, with 14% experiencing a drop of 50% or more. The majority of these hotel are in Scotland, Wales and the rural towns and country areas of England, but London and other large cities are not immune to the affects more than half of the hotels in larger towns/cities are experiencing a decline in business of 10%, said the survey. More than 14% of London hotels have seen business drop by up to 25%; large towns have suffered more, with 21% losing up to 25% of their business, reported the survey.
The British Hospitality Association estimates the potential loss to the UK hospitality industry in overseas earnings to be around #3 billion, or $4.28 billion, with a further #2 billion, or $2.85 billion loss in domestic visitors. The Association has also found that some hotel investment plans have been postponed or cancelled due to the epidemic. (4/20/01)