Whitbread has reported a 1.3% drop in UK like-for-like sales in the third quarter as Britons delayed travel plans amid Brexit uncertainty.
The Premier Inn owner also took a cautious approach to hotel demand for the next fiscal year.
Still, Whitbread's UK and international businesses combined posted a 1% sales growth in the quarter ended November 28 on strong demand for its food and beverage offerings.
The company, which also owns brands including Beefeater, Brewers Fayre, and Bar + Block, expects in-line results for the current fiscal year.
Whitbread has with over 80,000 rooms in the UK and abroad under the Premier Inn brand.
It had warned multiple times last year that it saw companies cut back business trips as the UK grappled with the issue of leaving the European Union and sought multiple extensions to the exit date.
The company, which traces its roots back to 1742, said a weakening of confidence among people making business or leisure trips in the UK continued, but added that it was partially offset by the strength in the central London market.
In the fiscal year to date, UK like-for-like sales fell 2.2%.
A Brexit showdown in the form of a general election last month also interrupted the Christmas season.
Recently, however, the picture has become clearer as Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who won a clear majority in the election, got lawmakers behind a legislation that allows the country to depart from the EU by the end of this month with an exit deal.
"Despite the short-term economic uncertainty, there remains significant long-term opportunities for Premier Inn in both the UK and Germany," Whitbread chief executive Alison Brittain said.
The company, which has been working hard on its expansion plans in Germany, said it expects losses from its German business to narrow to £10m in fiscal 2021 from an expected loss of £12m in the current year.
