High Hotel Prices in San Fran? Blame the iPhone 5

The iPhone rumor mill has been churning as the company released a date for what most assume is the announcement for the iPhone 5 (official release date rumored as September 21). Apple invited the media to the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco on September 12. And the scramble to get there is driving more than just smartphone fever.

Sites like HotelChatter.com and TravelersToday.com are reporting an increase in the price of hotel rooms in San Francisco as the date of the big reveal looms. Both sites quote findings from hotel search engine Trivago's hotel price index report, which demonstrates a 10% increase in average price over last month and a 25% increase over the same period last year. The report quotes an average room price of $232 for September 2011 in San Francisco, while this year prices are averaging $289 for the same period. And that's with more than 50% of the hotel rooms in the area still available.

Photo credit: San Francisco with Golden Gate Bridge via Shutterstock