News from Premier Inn

THE REAL COST OF HALF-TERM FOR UK PARENTS

As every penny counts whilst the credit crunch bites, research unveiled by Premier Inn today shows that keeping kids busy during this half-term is going to cost UK families an extra £374.39[1].

This is on top of normal living costs like mortgage/ rent, food and clothing for their brood; so parents nationwide will need to tighten their belts to shoulder the load. This means that this half-term UK parents will experience costs which total a whopping £2.7billion[2].

To help families still enjoy half-term fun, Premier Inn, the largest and fastest growing hotel brand, has a ‘Great Days Out’ scheme that offers great value family breaks. Families staying at a Premier Inn can get a ‘2 for 1’ or ‘kids go free’ offer at a selection of over 800 attractions across the UK, with kids staying and eating breakfast free, costing from just £50 per family room.

Typical costs for the coming half-term include:
Unpaid leave per parent per day - £65.11
Additional childcare per average family per week - £91.56
Average attraction entry fee for the family for a day (e.g. zoo/ theme park/ castle) - £57.87
Lunch/ refreshments - £30.00
‘Extras’ (e.g. guide book/ souvenirs) - £77.44

Premier Inn spokesperson Steve Conway, Head of Marketing for Premier Inn, said:
“Holiday time can be really fun for children, but this half-term is going to put a lot of financial pressure on families. Given the current economic climate, and with Christmas looming, parents across the UK are going to feel it even more than usual. Premier Inn offers a great value alternative, to allow families to have a short break, without having to break the bank.”

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For further information please contact Carly Hewitt or Katy Stolliday on 0207 693 6999 or e-mail premierinn@frankpr.it

Notes to editors:
For hotel bookings please visit http://www.premierinn.com/ and for images please visit the Whitbread image library http://www.whitbreadimages.com/
Premier Inn is the UK's largest and fastest-growing hotel brand with over 556 hotels and 38,000 rooms across the UK.
Premier Inn bedrooms are 22m² and feature en-suite bathroom, TV, and internet access for business guests. Premier Inn offers customers a ‘Good Night Guarantee' of a good quality room, comfortable surroundings and friendly service, which is unique amongst Britain's leading hotel chains.
Premier Inn was the first Britain-wide hotel group to sign up with national tourist boards, VisitBritain, VisitScotland and VisitWales; this means Premier Inn is now part of a new quality assessment scheme, specially created for budget accommodation.
A joint venture with Emirates has seen the Premier Inn brand develop in the Gulf region, with its first budget hotel in Dubai opened in Spring 2008. Premier Inn also has a joint venture in India with Emaar-MGF to roll out 12,000 rooms in 10 years.
Premier Inn is part of Whitbread PLC, the UK's largest hotel and restaurant company. It's restaurant brands, Beefeater, Table Table, Brewers Fayre and Taybarns are also dedicated to providing great value for families.
[1] £374.39 cost of half-term for the average UK family of 1.64 children calculated by:
· Unpaid leave per parent for one day - £65.11 (average UK wage according to ONS)
· Weekly UK holiday childcare cost is £91.56 for 5-day full-time holiday playscheme according to Daycare Trust.
· Average attraction entry fee per day based on 2 adult, 2 child entry to six leading UK attractions (Drayton Manor Park, Chester Zoo, Camelot Themepark, Howletts Animal Park, Diggerland Devon, Diggerland Durham) = £57.87
· Average family train travel cost - £52.41 (calculated on combined average cost for 2 adults and 2 children travelling by train to Drayton Manor Park from Birmingham, Chester Zoo from Manchester, Camelot Themepark from Liverpool, Howletts Animal Park from London, Diggerland Devon from Bristol, Diggerland Durham from Newcastle)
· Lunch/refreshments - £30 (based on 4 x lunch @ £5, 4 x drinks £1.00, 4 x ice creams @ £1.50)
· ‘Extras’ such as guidebook & souvenirs - £77.44 (based on average examples, such as guidebook @ £3.50, priority parking @ £3, fast-track pass @ £6, souvenirs x 2 @ £19.97, rain coats x4 @ £6.25)


[2] £2.7 billion figure based on 7.4million UK families. Each family spending £374.39 this half term= £2.7 billion spent this half term in total by families.