20 March, 2013 - TripAdvisor^®, the world’s largest travel site*, unveils the inaugural TripIndex^TM Room Service 2013 – a cost-comparison of common incidental items and services that many travellers will purchase when staying in a hotel, across key destinations around the world.

TripAdvisor’s TripIndex Room Service is tracked against the British pound and is based on the combined cost of a club sandwich ordered on room service, a bottle of water, peanuts, mini bottle of vodka and a can of coke from the mini bar and the dry cleaning of one shirt.  All costs are taken from top TripAdvisor rated 4 star hotels in each featured destination.

“When planning a trip away, either for business or pleasure, we always know the cost of the hotel room itself, but what about the costs we often incur in the hotel? By comparing the cost of these popular items from hotels around the world, TripIndex Room Service gives travellers a useful snapshot of where their money will stretch the furthest,” commented TripAdvisor spokesperson, Emma Shaw.

The most affordable destination for British travellers, when it comes to TripIndex Room Service, is South Africa’s Cape Town with a total TripIndex Room Service cost of £12.61, while Egypt’s Sharm el Sheikh takes second place with £15.27. At more than four times the cost of Cape Town, Moscow in Russia topped the list as the costliest with a TripIndex value of £53.05, closely followed by Paris which totals £44.17.

Affordable Africa and Asia

Africa offers British travellers the best value for money when it comes to those all-important room service costs, the continent lays claim to three of the ten cheapest destinations including the best value overall, Cape Town. Sharm el Sheikh follows closely behind in second place and Marrakech in Morocco is ninth.  And, while it might be more expensive to get there, it seems Asia offers great value for money when you arrive at the hotel, claiming three of the ten cheapest destinations: Mumbai in India, Jakarta in Indonesia and Taipei in Taiwan rank third, eighth, and tenth respectively in the list.

Hotel amenities comparatively costly in Europe

Europe dominates the most expensive list with seven of the top ten destinations, and Northern Europe leads the way in the costly stakes laying claim to three of them. Moscow in Russia takes first place while Paris (France), Stockholm (Sweden), Oslo (Norway), Zurich (Switzerland) and Helsinki (Finland) come second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth place respectively with Brussels (Belgium) coming in tenth.

London outside the ten most expensive destinations

London is often perceived as one of the world’s most expensive destinations, but when it comes to the common costs incurred once checked-in to a hotel, TripAdvisor’s TripIndex Room Service reveals that London is ranked in 11th place. On average, London is almost one and a half times cheaper than the most expensive destination (Moscow) for each TripIndex Room Service item. A club sandwich is £11.00, bottle of water £2.80, peanuts are £4.00, a can of coke £2.65, mini bottle of vodka £7.25 and to dry clean a shirt is £6.66.

Similar items, vastly different prices across destinations

TripIndex Room Service shows significant cost differences between cities for all items.

• Club sandwich – The most expensive destination for this common hotel food order, is Zurich, Switzerland, where the average cost is £18.67 – over five times that of the cheapest in the list, £3.53 in Sofia, Bulgaria.

• Bottle of water – Oslo, Norway has the highest cost for a bottle of water at £5.23. In both Hong Kong, China and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia all the hotels contacted provided bottled water free of charge.

• Peanuts – At £7.96, Moscow, Russia is the most costly for peanuts taken from the mini-bar. The snack is over seven times cheaper in hotels in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico at £1.02.

• Can of coke – A can of coke from the hotel mini-bar is most expensive in Oslo, Norway at £5.06 – over four times that of the cheapest in the list, £1.20 in Cape Town, South Africa.

• Mini bottle of vodka – The most expensive destination for a mini bottle of vodka from a mini-bar is Stockholm, Sweden at £11.54; nearly six times that of the cheapest in the list, £2.03 in Cape Town, South Africa. Moscow is the second most expensive destination at £11.04, perhaps surprising considering Vodka is Russia’s national drink.

• Dry cleaning of one shirt – Moscow, Russia has the highest cost to dry clean a shirt in a hotel at £11.30 – over six times that of Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt the cheapest on the list at £1.81.

“For those willing to shell out a bit more on flights, it seems there is money to be saved in Asia or Africa. For Brits looking to stay a little closer to home in Europe, there is a price to pay and that price is on average more than four times as expensive,” continued Emma Shaw.

TripIndex Room Service at a glance

Cheapest:

Most Expensive:

The full TripIndex is available at www.tripadvisor.co.uk/InfoCenter-a_ctr.RoomServiceUK

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For more information, please contact Hayley Coleman / 077 398 27 951 / hcoleman@tripadvisor.com 

Notes to Editors:

The international TripIndex destination list comprises key destinations from 46 of the 50 countries which receive the largest number of international visitor arrivals (data compiled by the UNWTO).  

TripIndex Room Service prices out the following items in each destination to represent the cost of common incidental items and services used in a hotel that travellers will incur during a stay:

Room service:

• Club sandwich

Mini bar:

• Bottle of water

• Peanuts

• Mini bottle of vodka

• Can of coke

Dry cleaning:

• One shirt

Prices shown specify the average cost (taken from a minimum of three hotels), collected from the top ten rated four star hotels in each featured destination. The top ten hotels were ranked according to TripAdvisor’s Popularity Index.  The Popularity Index is dynamic and can change at any time.  The list was accurate as of 21 January 2013.

Prices were taken in local currencies between 21 January and 5 February 2013 and converted to relevant quoted currencies, on 6 February 2013

Room service: Room service prices specify the average cost of a club sandwich taken from a minimum of three (where possible) hotels. Where a club sandwich was not available, the nearest equivalent was used as an alternative.

Mini bar: Mini bar prices specify the average cost of a bottle of water, peanuts, can of coke and a mini bottle of vodka. These prices were taken from a minimum of three (where possible) hotels, or the maximum number available. Where peanuts were not available, the nearest equivalent was used as an alternative. Where a mini bottle of vodka was not available, the nearest equivalent was used as an alternative. Sizes/volumes of items may vary, but are the standard option as sold by each hotel used in the study.

*Please note – in Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur, all the hotels contacted provided complimentary bottles of water.

Dry cleaning: Dry cleaning prices specify the average cost to dry clean one shirt. These prices were taken from a minimum of three (where possible) hotels.