Hotel room rates take the fast lift to top floor

IN A year dogged by weak economic growth, hotel room rates in Singapore climbed to a record high, coming in at an estimated $261 for 2012 as a whole and making the city-state’s average rate among the priciest in the region.

Those who stayed in luxury hotels here, paid an average room rate of $428 last year.

The hospitality industry closed the doors on 2012 – a year where GDP growth came in at 1.3 per cent – with an estimated $2.8 billion in room revenue, up 5.9 per cent from 2011, according to the Ministry of Trade and Industry’s (MTI) 2012 Economic Survey of Singapore.

After slumping to $190 in 2009, the average room rate (ARR) has been growing steadily in recent years, increasing from $218 in 2010 and surpassing pre-crisis levels to hit $247 in 2011.

Hotel room rates take the fast lift to top floor