A survey conducted among European hotels by , www.hotelinfo.com , an online reservation service  showed that almost half of hotels (46.08%) are approaching the new year with cautious optimism, and, according to hotel.info, expect a moderate, albeit slow, recovery. Nevertheless, 24.44% are more optimistic in their outlook, and believe they will be doing significantly more business very soon and will be operating at higher capacity. In contrast, just 6% anticipate a rise in hotel rates this year. Only 16% of the hotels see no material improvement in 2010 compared with the fourth quarter of 2009, revealing a less optimistic viewpoint than their colleagues. Around 7% of hotel operators admitted to uncertainty and felt unable to provide an assessment.

Overall, however, the hotel.info sector survey revealed a comparable attitude across Europe. Only Spanish hotel operators, a country that has been particularly badly hit, have a more reserved view of the immediate future than their European counterparts. The percentage of hotels that expect a tangible recovery before long is lower here (15.28%). Indeed, a considerable majority (55.56%) even believe the recovery will be slower. Taking into account the number of hotel operators who believe in a recovery of any sort - be it slow or fast - Italian hoteliers seem to be most positive (76.59%) about the prospects for 2010. The comparable average figure for Europe as a whole is 70.52%.