Paris-based hotel company Accor said on Wednesday that it expected weak demand for budget hotels in austerity-hit Southern Europe to continue through June as it posted a marked slowdown in first-quarter sales. As reported by Reuters, the upscale hotel segment remains resilient, meanwhile, with demand still sustained in key European cities and in emerging markets.
"First-quarter 2013 trends - contrasted conditions in Europe and satisfactory business levels in the emerging markets - are expected to continue in the second quarter, given the lack of any observable shift in business at this stage," Accor said. The world's fourth-largest hotelier makes more than 70 percent of its sales in Europe and is more exposed to the region's ailing economy than larger rivals InterContinental, Marriott and Starwood.
Meanwhile Accorhotels.com has seen website traffic increase by 25% from 2010 to 2012. More than 100 million people visited the website last year, with 10 online bookings made every minute.
