Hotel Companies Assess London Bombings’ Impact

LONDON— Hotel companies waived cancellation fees for their London properties in the wake of Thursdays terrorist bombings, but otherwise said operations would continue as usual. For example, Marriott International, which has 15 hotels in the greater London area, waived fees through July 24. Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, which owns or manages five properties in the market, eliminated cancellation charges through July 14. InterContinental Hotels Group, which is headquartered in London, waived any charges through July 9. Local hotels immediately provided emergency aid. The Holiday Inn in Bloomsbury, for example, is close to one of the bombing sites and assisted emergency workers in sheltering the wounded. The Ho;liday Inn and other IHG hotels alsoprovided blankets, towels, showering facilities, and other assistance to the injured and aid workers. Both Marriott and Starwood said they do not expect the bombings to have an adverse long-term effect on bookings. “We do not anticipate that yesterdays tragic events will have a long-term impact on travel to London,” Starwood said in a statement. Wall Street lodging analysts confirmed this view. JP Morgan Chase analyst Harry Curtis, for instance, noted that such attacks cause near-term disruption, but dont tend to alter the industrys long-term fundamental demand trends, which in this case have been positive since 2004. The series of bombings killed 37 people, wounded hundreds, and caused major delays throughout the region. The bombings came a day after the International Olympics Committee named London was the host city for the 2012 Summer Games and occurred during the G8 Summit in Auchterarder, Scotland.