London hotel rates have increased in the past year, according to new research by HRS, with the capital city now the second most expensive in Europe.

Average room rates of £117.86 place London behind Zurich and ahead of Moscow, also making it the most expensive UK city per night. Edinburgh’s room rates are the second most expensive in the UK (£94.90), however they saw a significant decrease of almost 6 per cent based on last year. Overall, UK hotel rates increased in the past year, alongside optimistic forecasts for the UK economy which suggests that the year ahead can be met with similar optimism for the UK’s hotel industry.

Zurich, London and Moscow are the most expensive top destinations in Europe

In Europe generally, Zurich remains the most expensive with an average of €145 per room, followed by London and then Moscow with €141 per night. City travellers found the most inexpensive room rates in Prague, even if the rates in the Golden City rose by four per cent to €70.

The research also showed that visitors to Budapest, Warsaw, Lisbon and Athens were able to relax their travel expenses thanks to more moderate room rates. The rates in Warsaw decreased the most and the hotels there could not sustainably profit from the Word Cup 2012. They saw an average decrease of nine per cent. Madrid also saw a decrease of some seven per cent – a noticeable effect of the consequences of the economic crisis in Spain.

Zurich remains the frontrunner of the comparison of the top destinations, with an average of €145 despite a decrease of three per cent on the average room rates. Vienna, Moscow and Amsterdam also had slightly less expensive room rates than a year before, where the room rates decreased by four per cent in these cities. The largest increase in room rates was seen in the major Scandinavian cities of Stockholm (€138), Oslo (€133) and Copenhagen (€129), where the room rates increased by around five per cent.

New York is the global frontrunner, followed by Rio de Janeiro and Sydney

The hotel room rates decreased in around two thirds of international cities. This is most prominently the case for Tokyo, with an average rate of £111 per room (a decrease of 19 per cent). Mumbai, Shanghai and Buenos Aires also saw a decrease of ten per cent on the average room rates.

However, Mexico City (+13 per cent), Bangkok (+11 per cent) and New York (+9 per cent) are now more expensive, which means that the city that never sleeps now holds the frontrunner position worldwide. Hotel owners in New York had set their rates at an average of £155 per night, followed by Rio de Janeiro (£148) and Sydney (£144). For that price, one could have booked nearly three nights in Kuala Lumpur (£48), Shanghai (£53) or Bangkok (£54).