Perth hotel prices skyrocket

AUSTRALIAN hotel prices have leapt in Perth, up 21 per cent on last year and making the WA city's rooms more expensive on average than London's.

PRICE rises at Perth hotels have been among the highest in the world over the past year, new research shows.

Travellers faced price hikes in the Western Australian capital of 21 per cent in the first six months of this year compared with the same period last year, according to a survey by Hotels.com.

The increase took the average one-night Perth room rate to $211.

The average price of hotel rooms around Australia increased by six per cent to $168 as demand outstripped supply in popular destinations, with the Whitsunday Islands the most expensive at $252 - up five per cent.

On a global scale, the most expensive destinations for Australians were Rio de Janeiro and New York, while the cheapest were Siem Reap, Cambodia and Hanoi, Vietnam.

Room rates in Rio, the city hosting the 2016 Olympics, jumped 25 per cent to $294, while New York prices climbed three per cent to $268.

The average room rate in Siem Reap was $63 per night, while prices in Hanoi plummeted 17 per cent to $70.

Rome and Vienna experienced price falls of 12 per cent to $189 and 11 per cent to $150 respectively, while a night in a hotel in Venice, traditionally an expensive destination, was down seven per cent at $233.

Meanwhile, in London hotel prices were flat in the lead-up to the Olympics as hoteliers were forced to slash rates to fill rooms.

Although bargains were plentiful in Europe, hotel prices in America became more expensive as the Aussie dollar lost some ground against its US counterpart.

Prices in Honolulu - a favourite with Australians of late - jumped 11 per cent to $227.