A survey of 23 agent members from the Hotel Booking Agents Association (HBAA) has found a rise in demand for serviced apartment accommodation.
Respondents said 30 per cent of their clients are ‘increasingly’ using serviced apartments for their transient accommodation needs. Fifty-seven per cent of respondents claimed that over the past year clients have used serviced apartments more than they did in the preceding 12 months. Equally, 52 per cent of the surveyed members claimed that apartment usage is growing as a percentage of overall room night volumes and spend.
HBAA member, The Apartment Service, surveyed agent members as part of its Industry Report 2013-2014, which was released in June 2013.
While price remains a key denominator in clients’ decision to use serviced apartments as opposed to hotels (38 per cent of respondents indicated this to be the most important factor), agents also indicated that self-catering facilities and independence are increasingly high on the agenda.
With corporate bookings remaining a key component of serviced apartment operators’ business mixes, the figures are encouraging for the HBAA’s serviced apartment members, which include Dolphin House, Globe Apartments and Greenwood Serviced Apartments.
“Business travellers today are much savvier and are increasingly looking for more choice and flexibility; they’re switching on to the fact a serviced apartment offers cost savings and greater convenience, as well as the independence and comfort afforded by treating an apartment as their ‘home from home’,” says Chair of the HBAA’s Serviced Apartment Committee, Ricky Kapoor (pictured).
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