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| January 11, 2006 | Wednesday | Zilhaj 10, 1426 |
Fans face penalty prices at hotels: World Cup soccer
BERLIN, Jan 10: Looking for a cheap room in Germany during the soccer World Cup? Think again. Organisers of the month-long tournament and the German tourist industry had promised reasonable rates but fans looking for affordable accommodation now are likely to be disappointed.
Costa Rican supporters wanting to watch their side open the tournament against hosts Germany in Munich on June 9 are among the most unlucky.
Staying at one of the city’s top hotels would set you back 1,294 euros ($1,565) per night over the weekend from June 9. The same double room costs just 167 euros next month.
Even a more modest four-star establishment is charging an overnight rate of 281 euros compared with 59 euros for the room in mid-February or mid-August.
Despite the price hikes, many hotels are already full.
Germany is expecting some one million foreigners to flood in while the football lasts. England is likely to send the largest contingent, with 100,000 people expected to head to Germany.
Its Football Supporters’ Federation (FSF) is already concerned about “price gouging” and has met officials from Frankfurt, Nuremberg and Cologne, where England play their opening matches, to discuss campsite availability and emergency accommodation.
Kevin Miles, FSF’s international coordinator, said a lot of hotels appeared to have raised overnight rates to the higher levels they charge when a trade fair is in town. The increase can be as much as five-fold.
“Sadly, there’s a certain inevitability,” he said. “The Germans have a word for it, ‘Kapitalismus’. Other countries do it too. It’s a factor of supply and demand.”
World Cup organisers argue that they have reached deals with large chains and privately-run hotels to charge only the standard, not the trade-fair, rate.
More than 500 hotels have signed up, offering 50,000 rooms.
“These are great rates, not for example what you’d be paying in Munich during the Oktoberfest or an international fair,” a spokeswoman said.
Nevertheless, a search for a twin room for the weekend of Germany’s opener in Munich found only one hotel in Augsburg, 60 kilometres (37 miles) from the stadium, and one in Munich city centre, for a minimum five-night stay at a total of 2,175 euros.
The spokeswoman said more offers were likely to emerge and hotels might not require minimum stays as block bookings became clearer.—Reuters
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