Dalata, Ireland’s largest hotel group, aims to increase its hotel room count from 12,000 to 21,000 by 2030, focusing on expanding its Maldron and Clayton brands while also targeting leadership in the four-star segment in major Irish and English cities.
The company is undertaking a €25m share buyback as part of its strategy following the sale of two non-core hotels, and it previously completed a €30m share buyback.
Since 2021, Dalata has expanded its English presence significantly, adding 11 hotels and recently opening new properties in Liverpool, Brighton, and London, bringing its total to 23 hotels in England and Scotland.
The group reported a 1pc increase in RevPAR (revenue per available room) for July and August and anticipates overall RevPAR growth of 2pc for September and October, bolstered by strong corporate revenue and a busy events calendar in Dublin.
At an investor day in London, Dalata shared: “We are aiming to become the largest hotel operator in the four-star segment of all major cities in Ireland and regional England by 2030, with a growing presence in London and continental Europe.”
“The group remains positive in its outlook for the remainder of the year as we continue to see a strong return of corporate business after the summer period and good leisure demand around events. In particular, we expect good demand in November in Dublin on the back of a strong events calendar. Positive momentum has continued through the year and the group expects to achieve RevPAR growth of 2pc on 2023 levels for September and October. For the same two-month period, RevPAR for its Dublin hotel portfolio is expected to be 1pc higher than 2023 levels, with regional Ireland up 4pc. The English portfolio is expected to be 1pc ahead of 2023 on a like-for-like basis, helped by the inclusion of the two London hotels added to the portfolio last summer, both of which are showing strong growth versus last year.”
