Europe’s hotels witnessed their fifth consecutive year of value growth last year, with properties in the UK and Southern Europe seeing some of the biggest gains, according to our 2015 European Hotel Valuation Index.

‘Hotels in several cities have experienced significant value increases including Manchester and Birmingham which have both seen double-figure growth following improved performance and growing investor interest,’ said report co-author James Heavey.

The city with the biggest value climb was Madrid, with an impressive 14% rise year-on-year. The average value (in euro) per hotel room in the Spanish capital rose from €185,000 in 2013 to €211,000 in 2014 owing to a slowdown in the city’s new hotel supply and renewed international demand for rooms, particularly in the corporate sector.

‘As a result, potential investors are looking at Madrid, and beyond, to acquire cut-price assets ahead of the expected growth of the next few years,’ added Heavey.

The second biggest value rise in hotel stock was in Manchester, up 13.5% year-on-year to €167,510 per room. The hike is partly attributable to the lack of new hotels in the city, a situation due to change as Manchester has a development pipeline of some 2,000 rooms opening by 2017.

Dublin hotels recorded the third largest growth in the Valuation Index, with values rising 13% to €203,000 per room. As Ireland’s banks recover from recession, property prices overall have risen 25% in the past year.

This year’s Index reveals that Europe’s most expensive hotel rooms are still in Paris (€703,935), London (€678,222) and Zürich (€534,646), considerably above the European average of €246,641.

‘The trend for improving values should be sustained in the foreseeable future,’ commented report co-author Sophie Perret.

‘There is clearly a narrowing of the gap that has, for the last few years, separated primary markets from those cities that were previously considered ‘no-go’ areas for most investors. While cities such as Paris and London will remain out of reach for most, hotels in German cities continue to offer reliable opportunities and Southern European markets are certainly a bright spot at the moment.’

As Russia’s political turmoil continues it’s no surprise that the country’s two biggest cities saw the biggest value declines. In Moscow hotel values fell nearly 38%, while those in St Petersburg fell by 32%.

Sofia remains in the lowest position on the Index, with values per room averaging €99,902, Bratislava was ranked second from bottom (€104,161) and Tallinn (€109,273) third from bottom.

To download a copy of 2015 European Hotel Valuation Index, by James Heavey and Sophie Perret click here.