IN BRIEF HOTELS
BUYERS URGED TO REVIEW TRAVEL PROGRAMMES
BUYERS ARE BEING URGED TO CONTINUALLY review their travel programmes to ensure the best possible hotel rates as they continue to soar in the UK and Ireland. According to research from hotel booking specialist HRS, average prices for room nights showed significant year-on-year growth in all of the UK and Ireland’s major cities last year. HRS analysed all hotel bookings made via its booking portal in 2014, with results showing that hotels in Leeds recorded the highest price rise, with an average increase of 21.6 per cent. London’s hotels followed closely with a 16.1 per cent rise from 2013 and Birmingham saw a 14.5 per cent increase. HRS also revealed results of a survey showing
around 80 per cent of employees travelling on business have to travel a three-hour drive from their place of work to justify a hotel stay to their company. The survey of 1,000 UK business travellers showed employees could be travelling for around six hours a day without being allowed to have an overnight stay. For employees on business in Europe, a 2.5-hour flight was needed to authorise a stay. This means employees could be expected to travel from London to Berlin return in one day.
BA OWNER: PROFITS PROPHET
BRITISH AIRWAYS OWNER IAG has reported a significant jump in annual profits and raised its forecast for 2015. The airline group reported pre-tax profits Ð828 million for the year ending 31 December, from Ð227 million the previous year.
IAG, which also includes Iberia and Vueling, said it expects to generate an operating profit of Ð2.2 billion this year. This is 20 per cent higher than previous forecasts and has been helped by the drop in oil prices bringing down fuel costs.
BUYINGBUSINESSTRAVEL.COM
■ Iraqi Airways is launching two routes from Manchester this month (March). The airline will begin weekly services from the UK’s third biggest airport to Sulaymaniyah and Erbil, starting 15 March. Both routes will be operated by a Boeing 737-800 carrying up to 162 passengers.
■ Bristol Airport is to to get its first hotel with the opening of a Hampton by Hilton property in the spring of 2015. Among the facilities will be a choice of meetings spaces, a 24-hour fitness centre and parking for up to 120 cars.
■ American Airlines has announced the first routes to be operated by its new B787-8 Dreamliners. The US carrier will introduce the B787-8 on the Dallas/Fort Worth-Chicago O’Hare route from 7 May. The Dreamliner will then be launched internationally between Dallas/ Fort Worth and Beijing on 2 June. From 4 June, AA will deploy the B787-8 from Dallas/Fort Worth to Buenos Aires.
Heathrow
‘falling behind’ warning
HEATHROW HAS WARNED IT IS FALLING behind European rivals in direct flights to growth markets, despite an increase in rev- enues and a jump in passenger numbers for 2014. Turnover for the year ending 31 December 2014 was £2.69 billion, an increase of 8.8 per cent from the previous year; and EBITDA (earnings before inter- est, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation) was up by 10.3 per cent – rising from £1.42 billion to £1.57 billion. In its annual results the airport showed it had its busiest year with 73.4 million passengers, up 1.4 per cent from 2013, “but with no real growth in flights”. It put the lack of flight growth down to being at full capacity. In a statement the airport said: “With
Heathrow full, Britain is falling behind in direct flights to growth markets – that’s why calls for Heathrow expansion are growing from all parts of the UK”. Heathrow operates at around 98 per cent capacity and is battling against Gatwick for expansion, which the airport said is needed if Britain is going to compete with other countries “in the race for growth”.
RAIL
Keolis and Eurostar mull West Coast bid
TRANSPORT GROUPS KEOLIS AND EUROSTAR are reportedly ready to launch a joint bid to run the West Coast main line when the competition to operate one of the UK’s most lucrative rail routes starts later this year. According to The Times the French consortium will battle with other companies, including Stagecoach, to run the line in 2017, when the current deal with Virgin Trains expires.
Keolis is 70 per cent owned by SNCF,
France’s state-owned railway. Eurostar operates services from London St. Pancras to Europe and is 40 per cent owned by the British taxpayer.
BBT MARCH/APRIL 2015 7
AIRPORTS
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