Chapter 1: Global Price Changes

Europe shows modest signs of recovery

• The HPI in Europe reached 105 points in Q2 2011, the highest it has been since Q4 in 2008 but 12% lower than at its peak in Q2 2007.
• This figure means travelers to European destinations were paying just 5% more for hotel rooms than in 2004 when the Index began.
• There was a 2% price increase in the January-June 2011 period compared with the first half of last year and four months of successive rises up to the end of June.
• Again, the picture is mixed across the region with Iceland recovering from the effects of the volcanic eruption in 2010, Ireland boosted by the visits of the Queen and President Obama and Spain helped by an increase in visitor numbers as travelers avoided the unrest in Egypt and North Africa. Elsewhere, the economic problems in Greece drove prices down.