Whitbread reported “encouraging” first-quarter trading in its UK hotels ahead of the peak summer period, albeit with some softening of demand for weekend breaks.
Its Premier Inn chain made a sluggish start to the year, having been 1 per cent down after seven weeks, but by the end of the quarter its accommodation sales had regained the lost ground to be in-line with last year.
Group revenues, including pub-restaurants and German hotels, were up 1 per cent to £739 million. On a like-for-like basis total sales were down 1 per cent, with the UK down 1 per cent and Germany up 5 per cent.
While midweek business and leisure demand remained robust, the company said that short-lead weekend demand was “slightly softer, particularly in London,
