Tourism Business Monitor 2017 Accommodation Report Wave 2 Post-Easter holidays
Contents Background Key Findings Business Dashboards Visitor Profile Business Performance Workforce Business Confidence 2
Background, objectives and research method Tourism Business Monitor designed to measure, monitor and understand tourism business performance and confidence and the factors which influence them. Telephone survey conducted 4-5 times per year immediately following key tourism periods among: c. 500 accommodation establishments (c. 250 serviced / c. 250 non-serviced), including mix by region, establishment size and hotels / guest houses / B&B / self-catering / caravan and campsites. c. 300 visitor attractions including mix by region, attraction type, size (measured by annual visitor admissions) and free / paid admission. Questions on hot topics included on a periodic basis. Fieldwork dates: Apr 2017: 24 Apr-2 May, reviewing the Easter period 2017 Jan 2017: 3-11 Jan 2017, reviewing the Christmas and New Year period 2016 Jul 2016: 18-25 Jul 2016, reviewing period after the Easter holidays up until mid-july Apr 2016: 18-24 Apr 2016, reviewing the Easter period 2016 Jan 2016: 5-11 Jan 2016, reviewing the Christmas and New Year period 2015 Nov 2015: 2-8 Nov 2015, reviewing mid-september until the end of the October Sept 2015: 3-10 Sept 2015, reviewing the period from end of May until the end of the school summer holidays June 2015: 1-5 June 2015, reviewing the period from Easter up until the end of May Jan 2015: 5-9 Jan 2015, reviewing the Christmas and New Year period 2014 Nov 2014: 3-9 Nov 2014, reviewing mid-september until the end of the October Sept 2014: 8-14 Sept 2014, reviewing the period from mid-july up until the end of the summer holidays Apr 2014: 24 Apr-1 May 2014, reviewing the Easter period 2014 Jan 2014: 6-12 January 2014, reviewing the Christmas and New Year period 2013 Nov 2013: 4-10 Nov 2013, reviewing mid-september until the end of October Sept 2013: 9-14 Sept 2013, reviewing the period from mid-july up until the end of the summer holidays 3
Accommodation sample targets (total 500) Serviced Accommodation Non-serviced Accommodation % 100 Hotels 150 Guest Houses / B&Bs 150 Selfcatering 100 Caravan / Campsites North (North East, North West, Yorkshire) Midlands (East Midlands, East, Heart of England) South (South East, South West) 32 42 40 26 22 29 29 29 36 70 79 45 London 10 9 2 0 25 hotels with over 100 bed spaces 60 guest houses / B&Bs with over 10 bed spaces 35 self-catering with over 10 bed spaces 40 caravan / campsites with over 100 bed spaces This is the target sample for each wave, reflecting the profile of accommodation in England. There are minor variations wave on wave, which are corrected by weighting the profile if needed. 4
Key Findings The accommodation sector continued to expand over the Easter period, with 41% of accommodation sites reporting a growth in visits compared with Easter 2016, and only 20% reporting a drop. There has been an increase in both domestic and international guests. In the domestic market this was driven by the hotels and camping sectors with other accommodation types actually reporting a slight drop in visitors during the Easter period. The story is similar for the overseas market, where the growth is almost entirely down to the strong performance of hotels. The boost in visitor numbers at caravan/campsites over the Easter period has led to an all-time high satisfaction score (with 70% stating they were very satisfied ). Similarly, the performance of hotels (particularly larger ones) has also had a knock-on effect on satisfaction levels. The net level of growth amongst guest houses/ B&Bs and self catering sites are both down compared to year to date figures. However, this appears to be a levelling out rather than a drop in visitor numbers across the sector, with fairly equal proportions of sites reporting growth and contraction. Overall, satisfaction in these sectors remains high. Accommodation sites based in urban areas fared particularly well during the Easter period, with both reporting a higher proportion of growth than in Easter 2016. Whilst growth at coastal sites has dropped back, it also remains above Easter 2016 levels. Advance bookings are at a slightly higher level then in Easter 2016, with 44% of sites describing them as good and 30% as excellent. Consequently, business confidence for the rest of the year remains strong. This, together, with the strong recent performance, has led to an expectation that staffing levels will be increased amongst 1 in 5 sites. Confidence remains highest in urban locations, tallying with the higher levels of confidence seen at larger sites. With the summer season approaching, advanced booking levels at coastal sites have seen a strong increase. 5
Case Study THE HAUGHMOND, Shropshire The Haughmond experienced an increase in domestic visitors this year and feel confident about their outlook. Melanie Board, proprietor of The Haughmond, believes their success is down to focusing on core competencies and good promotion. 5 luxury en suite rooms in the Shropshire countryside 4 star rating It s all about quality and consistency; very good food, a quality product and delivery. A great guest experience has helped The Haughmond to become more established and led to a good level of repeat visits and strong word of mouth promotion. This offer has been complimented by The Haughmond s own marketing activities - particularly through social media (specifically Facebook, Twitter and Instagram). The use of MailChimp to distribute a regular newsletter has also been successful and has helped build the company s online presence. Inclusions in publications such as Sawday s handpicked accommodation listings and Harden s trusted restaurant guide have also helped to grow the hotel s reputation. These factors, combined with good levels of advance booking, have unsurprisingly led to The Haughmond being very confident of strong business performance over the coming months. 6
Business Dashboards 7
Business Performance Dashboard: Accommodation VISITOR NUMBERS Visitor numbers (%) 20 30 39 26 41 44 Apr 17 YTD 2017 SATISFACTION Satisfaction (%) 9 37 51 Versus same period previous year Down Same Up Satisfied with business performance Not at all Not very Quite Very Visitor numbers for Easter compared with the same period 2016 (%) Hotels Guest house / B&B Self catering Caravan / camping 33 26 63 Satisfaction with Performance during period (%) Hotels Guest house / B&B Self catering 57 52 48 47 41 49 26 31 39 38 39 25 25 11 12 86 86 91 Apr 17 Caravan / camping 70 26 96 Q3/4, Q6, Q7/8 PERIOD ASKED ABOUT FOR PAST BUSINESS PERFORMANCE April 2017: Easter period 2017 8
Business Confidence Dashboard: Accommodation Very confident Fairly confident 81 83 52 54 90 91 92 52 43 42 87 86 45 54 94 93 94 43 41 41 89 92 96 31 51 47 89 91 57 46 29 29 38 48 49 42 32 51 51 52 39 46 65 32 46 Nov 13 Jan 14 Apr 14 Jul 14 Sept 14 Nov 14 Jan 15 June 15 Sept 15 Nov 15 Jan 16 Apr 16 Jul 16 Jan 17 Apr 17 Until end of the year Until end of Easter Until early Summer Until end of school summer holidays Until end of October Until end of the year Until end of Easter Until end of the school summer holidays Until end of October Until end of the year Until end of Easter Until early Summer Until end of school summer holidays Until end of Easter Until early Summer April 2017 96 92 35 45 84 52 100 56 61 47 32 44 Hotels Guest house / B&B Self catering Caravan / camping Q13 PERIOD ASKED ABOUT FOR FUTURE BUSINESS CONFIDENCE April 2017: Up until late Spring/early Summer 9
Visitor Profile 10
Changing Visitor Profile (year-to-date vs. previous year): Accommodation Net growth of domestic guests continued over the Easter period, but the rate of growth has slowed and is now the same as the level seen in Easter 2016. The overseas market has also grown, albeit to a lesser extent. Up Down NET: Up - Down 43 36 34 30 36 38 46 32 37 39 41 29 28 39 31 +10 Domestic visitors 17 Nov 13 19 19 13 Jan 14 Apr 14 Jul 14 19 12 11 9 Sept Nov Jan 15 June 14 14 15 12 Sept 15 19 21 17 7 10 11 Nov Jan 16 Apr 16 Jul 16 Jan 17 Apr 17 15 Overseas visitors 34 29 24 Nov 13 20 23 25 31 19 Jan 14 Apr 14 Jul 14 38 14 Sept 14 30 18 Nov 14 39 27 27 8 Jan 15 June 15 37 18 Sept 15 33 37 14 12 Nov 15 19 22 23 28 31 16 26 20 Jan 16 Apr 16 Jul 16 Jan 17 Apr 17 +6 Q12 PERIOD ASKED ABOUT FOR PAST BUSINESS PERFORMANCE April 2017: The Easter period 11
Changing Visitor Profile (year-to-date vs. previous year): Accommodation type The growth in the UK market is driven by hotels and caravan/camping sites, which reported levels of +28 and +40 respectively. In contrast, other accommodation types actually saw slight drops in visitors during the Easter period. The story is similar for the overseas market, where the growth is almost entirely down to the strong performance of hotels. Up Same Down NET: Up - Down Hotels 42 45 14 +28 Guest Houses / B&Bs 26 47 27-1 Domestic visitors Self-Catering Caravan / Camping 24 46 49 49 27 6-3 +40 Hotels 37 51 12 +25 Guest Houses / B&Bs 27 47 25 +2 Overseas visitors Self-Catering Caravan / Camping 18 15 58 70 24 15-6 - Q12 PERIOD ASKED ABOUT FOR PAST BUSINESS PERFORMANCE April 2017: The Easter period 12
Business Performance 13
Visitor numbers: Year-on-year changes 41% of accommodation sites reported a growth in visits compared with the Easter period in 2016, with only 20% reporting a drop. % Apr 2017 30 11 39 3 17 Up Slightly up Exactly same Slightly down YTD 2017 38 5 26 4 27 Down 52 38 43 44 55 61 50 48 49 56 48 30 41 42 41 Up Down -16-17 -22-22 -28-25 -21-18 -20-19 -24-20 -29-36 -35 Nov 13 Jan 14 Apr 14 Jul 14 Sep 14 Nov 14 Jan 15 Jun 15 Sep 15 Nov 15 Jan 16 Apr 16 Jul 16 Jan 17 Apr 17 PERIODS ASKED ABOUT FOR PAST BUSINESS PERFORMANCE Jan: Christmas and New Year period / Apr: Easter period / June: Easter up until the end of May / Jul: After Easter holidays up until mid-july/ Sept: Mid-July/End of May (Sept 2015) up until the end of the summer holidays / Nov: Mid-September until the end of October Q3/4, Q7/8 14
Visitor numbers: Year-on-year changes by accommodation type Down Slightly down Exactly same Slightly up Up Levels of growth amongst guest houses/b&bs and self catering sites are both down compared to year to date figures. However, this is more to do with visitor levels remaining similar to the previous year (41% and 49% respectively) rather than because of any significant drops in visitors. % Hotels Guest house / B&B Self catering Caravan / camping 8 3 26 18 4 22 25 36 2 18 7 32 5 12 11 3 31 32 17 7 41 26 49 28 7 5 46 49 10 24 4 32 10 16 4 31 50 50 Apr 2017 YTD 2017 Apr 2017 YTD 2017 Apr 2017 YTD 2017 Apr 2017 YTD 2017 Q3/4, Q7/8 PERIOD ASKED ABOUT FOR PAST BUSINESS PERFORMANCE April 2017: Easter period 15
Changing business performance: By accommodation type & bed spaces The boost in visitor numbers at caravan/campsites over the Easter period has led to an all-time high satisfaction score (with 70% stating they were very satisfied ). Similarly, the performance of hotels (particularly larger ones) has also had a knock-on effect on satisfaction levels. ACCOMMODATION TYPE % Visitors up on last year 63 57 Hotels Guest house / B&B % Very Satisfied 70 52 48 47 33 26 Self catering Caravan / camping BED SPACES % Visitors up on last year % Very Satisfied 64 43 27 Up to 10 bed spaces 11 100 Bed spaces Over 100 bed spaces 66 51 44 Q3/4, Q6 PERIOD ASKED ABOUT FOR PAST BUSINESS PERFORMANCE April 2017: Easter period 16
Changing business performance: By accommodation location Accommodation sites based in urban areas fared particularly well during the Easter period, with both reporting a higher proportion of growth than in Easter 2016. Whilst growth at coastal sites has dropped back, it also remains above Easter 2016 levels. Seaside Large town or city Small town Countryside / village % Visitors up on last year % Very Satisfied 58 42 39 38 56 53 51 42 Nov 13 Jan 14 Apr 14 Jul 14 Sept 14 Nov 14 Jan 15 June Sept Nov 15 15 15 Jan 16 Apr 16 Jul 16 Jan 17 Apr 17 Nov 13 Jan 14 Apr 14 Jul 14 Sept Nov 14 14 Jan 15 June 15 Sept Nov 15 15 Jan 16 Apr 16 Jul 16 Jan 17 Apr 17 Q3/4, Q6 PERIOD ASKED ABOUT FOR PAST BUSINESS PERFORMANCE April 2017: Easter period 17
Positive verbatim comments on business performance: Accommodation Word of mouth has positively affected the business Exchange rates for international visitors Domestic tourism has improved Our bookings have increased as a result of better marketing Good weather Advertising has helped in a positive way Q11 18
Negative verbatim comments on business performance: Accommodation Not enough weddings compared to last year There has been significantly less room sales as a result of fewer visits from contractors or business people as last year we had a major project in the area Q11 19
Workforce
Employment changes: Paid employees The majority of sites have kept a consistent workforce compared to the previous year, and will continue to do so going forward. However, almost 1 in 5 are expecting to increase staffing levels before the end of the year. VS. PREVIOUS YEAR 6 74 15 4 Decreased Stayed the same Increased DK/can't say (13) (87) LOOKING FORWARD TO THE REST OF 2017 (EXPECTED) 3 67 19 11 Decrease Stay the same Increase Too early to say Q16a, Q16c 21
Business Confidence 22
Advance booking levels: Accommodation Advance bookings are at a slightly higher level then in Easter 2016, with 44% of sites describing them as good and 30% as excellent. % Very poor Poor Just OK Good Very good 6 6 3 1 5 3 6 4 2 2 4 3 6 6 6 6 4 1 21 2 4 1 10 8 9 11 10 15 13 13 20 19 19 22 19 22 24 24 33 31 30 27 35 32 35 35 35 39 41 44 45 39 38 32 34 37 37 33 34 47 39 37 33 24 28 21 26 29 30 14 12 16 18 16 Survey conducted: Nov 2013 Jan Jan 14 2014 Apr 2014 Jul Jul 14 2014 Sept Sep 2014 Nov 2014 Jan Jan 15 2015 June Jun 2015 Sept 2015 Nov 2015 Jan Jan 16 2016 Apr 2016 Jul Jul 16 Jan Jan 17 2016 2017 Apr 2017 Period asked about: Until end of the year Until the end of Easter Until late Spring/ early Summer Until end of school summer holidays Until end of October Until end of the year Until end of Easter Until the end of the school summer holidays Until end of October Until end of the year Until end of Easter Until late Spring/ early Summer Until the end of the school summer holidays Until end of Easter Until late Spring/ early Summer Q14 23
Confidence for forthcoming period: By accommodation type This increase in advance booking levels has had a positive impact on business confidence across all types of accommodation. CONFIDENCE: From now until the end of Easter % Very confident Hotels 61 47 44 32 Guest house / B&B Self catering Caravan / camping Nov 13 Jan 14 Apr 14 Jul 14 Sept 14 Nov 14 Jan 15 June 15 Sept 15 Nov 15 Jan 16 Apr 16 Jul 16 Jan 17 Apr 17 ADVANCED BOOKINGS: From now until the end of Easter % Very good / good 82 75 69 68 Hotels Guest house / B&B Self catering Caravan / camping Nov 13 Jan 14 Apr 14 Jul 14 Sept 14 Nov 14 Jan 15 June 15 Sept 15 Nov 15 Jan 16 Apr 16 Jul 16 Jan 17 Apr 17 Q13, Q14 24
Confidence for forthcoming period: By accommodation size Large and medium-sized sites reported the highest levels of advanced bookings (85% and 75%), and subsequently higher levels of confidence (57% and 46%) than smaller sites. CONFIDENCE: From now until the end of Easter % Very confident 57 46 38 Up to 10 bed spaces 11 100 Bed spaces Over 100 bed spaces Nov 13 Jan 14 Apr 14 Jul 14 Sept 14 Nov 14 Jan 15 June 15 Sept 15 Nov 15 Jan 16 Apr 16 Jul 16 Jan 17 Apr 17 ADVANCED BOOKINGS: From now until the end of Easter % Very good/ good 85 75 65 Up to 10 bed spaces 11 100 Bed spaces Nov 13 Jan 14 Apr 14 Jul 14 Sept 14 Nov 14 Jan 15 June 15 Sept 15 Nov 15 Jan 16 Apr 16 Jul 16 Jan 17 Apr 17 Over 100 bed spaces Q13, Q14 25
Confidence for forthcoming period: By location Confidence remains highest in urban locations, tallying with the higher levels of confidence seen at larger sites. With the summer season approaching, advanced booking levels at coastal sites have seen a strong increase. CONFIDENCE: From now until the end of Easter % Very confident Seaside 56 52 48 39 Large town or city Small town Countryside / village Nov 13 Jan 14 Apr 14 Jul 14 Sept 14 Nov 14 Jan 15 June 15 Sept 15 Nov 15 Jan 16 Apr 16 Jul 16 Jan 17 Apr 17 ADVANCED BOOKINGS: From now until the end of Easter % Very good / good 83 77 70 70 Seaside Large town or city Small town Nov 13 Jan 14 Apr 14 Jul 14 Sept 14 Nov 14 Jan 15 June 15 Sept 15 Nov 15 Jan 16 Apr 16 Jul 16 Jan 17 Apr 17 Countryside / village Q13, Q14 26
Business optimism for 2017: Accommodation Business confidence for the rest of the year remains at a similar level to Easter 2016, with 16% expecting much better results. Only 12% of businesses expect their business performance in 2017 overall to be worse than in 2016. % 2 1 4 3 2 3 2 1 3 3 3 1 1 2 2 1 2 7 7 7 4 4 14 14 9 11 8 9 9 10 Much worse than last year 28 36 34 30 26 31 35 31 31 35 40 33 41 43 34 Slightly worse than last year The same as last year Slightly better than last year 36 40 40 36 41 38 44 34 39 38 39 37 34 36 39 Much better than last year 19 18 16 17 20 22 16 22 19 20 16 19 14 15 16 Nov 2013 Jan 2014 Apr 2014 Jul 2014 Sept 2014 Nov 2014 Jan 2015 June 2015 Sept 2015 Nov 2015 Jan 2016 Apr 2016 Jul 2016 Jan 2017 Apr 2017 Q15 27
Positive verbatim comments on business optimism for 2017: Accommodation We re increasing our capacity Because of the level of forward bookings we have at this stage is higher than last year We're already up on what we were doing last year and we re booked solidly until the end of July Plans for new restaurant to open Getting busier by the day Q15b 28
Performance and confidence snapshot: April 2017 Visitor Numbers (Easter period) Confidence (up until late Spring/early Summer) Up Same Down Very Very / fairly TOTAL (%) 41 39 20 46 91 Hotel 63 26 11 61 96 Type (%) Guest / B&B 33 41 25 47 92 Self catering 26 49 25 32 84 Caravan / camping 57 31 12 44 100 Bed-spaces (%) Up to 10 27 44 29 38 86 11-100 43 42 15 46 91 Over 100 64 20 17 57 100 5 star 38 52 10 58 91 Grading (%) 4 star 36 39 25 35 88 1-3 star 45 35 20 44 88 Budget / other 44 38 18 51 95 Seaside 38 46 16 48 95 Location (%) Large town / city 58 23 19 56 100 Small town 42 34 25 52 92 Rural 39 40 21 39 86 30
Quality Standards and Other Details BDRC Continental comply with ISO 20252, the recognised international quality standards for market research, thus the project has been carried out in accordance with these standards. Adherence to the standard is independently audited once per year. Where subcontractors are used by BDRC Continental, they are briefed to ensure any outsourced parts of the research are conducted in adherence to ISO 20252. Full methodological details relevant to the project, are available upon request. 31