Scotland’s hotels sector has not had its troubles to seek in recent times, having been hit by extended periods of closure and restricted trading during the coronavirus pandemic.

So a survey published today by accountancy firm RSM UK, showing that Scotland’s hotels achieved rises in occupancy levels, room rates and gross operating profit margins in April as the sector geared up for the summer season, makes for encouraging reading.

The tracker, based on data compiled by Hotstats, shows the overall occupancy rate for hotels in Scotland rose from 65.4% in March to 70% in April. The occupancy rate increased from 68.7% to 71.2% between these two months across the UK.

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Average daily rates for occupied rooms jumped from £101.90 in March to £117.27 in April in Scotland, and from £135.69 to £142.73 across the UK. Room rates in April were up 10% in Scotland and 16% across the UK when compared with the same month of last year, the tracker shows.

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Revenue per available room (revpar) jumped from £66.70 in March to £82.11 in April in Scotland and increased from £93.23 to £101.57 in the UK as a whole. The hotel sector’s gross operating profit margin rose from 19.8% to 24.8% in Scotland in April, while falling from 31.9% to 31.4% across the UK.

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These numbers signal a welcome solidity of trading.

However, RSM UK chief economist Thomas Pugh cited continuing challenges for the sector, and declared: “There are reasons to be optimistic about the second half of this year, but only cautiously so.”

While noting “consumers still seem to be prioritising experiences over goods, which should further support demand for hotels”, he added: “Concerns about sticky inflation mean that interest rates are likely to rise to 5%, or even a little higher, raising the risk that the UK goes into a recession later this year or early in 2024. That, of course, would offset any benefit of falling inflation on consumer spending.”

The UK macroeconomic backdrop is undoubtedly very challenging indeed.

Hotel operators will be hoping that the prioritisation by consumers of experiences over goods proves enduring, and that the economic headwinds do not hamper demand.

Time will tell on these fronts.

In the meantime, we should take some heart from the current buoyancy of trading for hotels, many of which are having to rebuild their balance sheets after weathering the protracted periods of closure and restrictions amid the pandemic.