Hotels in the UK are the most expensive in Europe, costing on average £106 per night, according to figures published by Hotels.com.

Prices rose 12% last year, outstripping inflation and making England the only country in the continent to average more than £100 a night.

Bath ranks as the UK’s most expensive city to visit, with an average of £117 per night.

London was ranked second at £115 per night and Oxford was third at £113 per night. Surprisingly, Birmingham, England’s second largest city, came in at 19 th with a cost of just £79 per night. The UK actually defied world trends as hotel room prices across the globe dropped by 0.4%.

David Roche of Hotels.com said: “Whilst Bath’s combination of high visitor levels and luxury hotels means that it retains its place as the most expensive city in the UK, our data showed that Oxford and London are catching up fast.

“In the past, limited supply has made for an expensive night’s stay in the university city, and although a number of new hotels have been developed, these higher star rating properties have kept the average price growing along with interest from visitors. The increase in London rates continues a trend we’ve seen over the last four years, and reflects both rising visitor numbers and rising property prices in the capital.”