M&G Real Estate, the real estate investment arm of Prudential plc in the UK and Europe, has sold the 400-room Travelodge Gatwick Airport Central, situated at the north boundary of London Gatwick Airport, to an unnamed overseas investor for £40 million (£100,000 per room), reflecting a net initial yield of circa 7%. The buyer was reportedly supported by a debt facility with an LTV of around 55%. The property is let to Travelodge Hotels until 2049, with a passing rent of just over £3 million a year. The hotel underwent an extensive refurbishment programme in 2021 which saw its 400 rooms, common areas and café space upgraded.

Premier Inn group owner Whitbread has completed the acquisition of a portfolio of six hotels, totalling 900 rooms, comprised of the leasehold interest in five German hotels and the freehold interest in one hotel in Austria, for £28.4 million (£31,600 per room). The exact hotels, locations and sellers were not disclosed. Whitbread is set to close and refurbish the hotels, which will incur an estimated £10 million pre-tax loss for the current financial year. 

London-based private equity firm iAM Capital Group, through its iAM Capital Europe II Fund (ICE II), along with Italian billionaire Andrea Della Valle, have acquired the Capo Mimosa campground and holiday park near the medieval town of Cervo, along Italy’s Ligurian Riviera coast, from a group of local private investors. The site is set to be turned into a five-star beach resort worth over €40 million once completed, comprising 90 suites and villas, a beach club, a Michelin-starred restaurant and spa facilities. This latest acquisition from iAM Capital follows its purchase of the five-star Palazzo Sanzio hotel in Rome in 2022.

Portuguese hotel group Pestana has acquired the future 210-room Pestana CR7 Austerlitz hotel in Paris, France, from Paris’s largest homebuilders, Kaufman & Broad. The 6,500 sqm hotel will form part of Kaufman & Broad’s 90,000 sqm mixed-use Evolution development project situated on the left bank of the Seine and connected to Gare de Austerlitz. The hotel will be the sixth for the Pestana CR7 brand, with the other five locations being Funchal, Lisbon, New York, Madrid and Marrakech. The brand was created in partnership between Pestana Group chairman Dionísio Pestana and Cristiano Ronaldo. The lifestyle hotel is expected to incur a total investment of €60 million and will include a rooftop swimming pool and bar with views overlooking Paris. The property is currently under construction and set to be completed in 2027.

Catella Residential Investment Management (CRIM), a subsidiary of Catella Wohnen Europa, has acquired the future 90-room Stayery Bochum aparthotel in Bochum, Germany, for a reported €10.5 million (€117,000 per room) from Kreer Development. The Stayery aparthotel brand has signed a rental agreement with Kreer Development for the new project in Bochum, with completion of the serviced apartments set for early to mid-2025. The common areas in the building will include co-working areas, a space for snacks and drinks and a two-storey loft with a lounge. The Stayery aparthotel brand currently operates in Germany in Berlin, Bielefeld, Frankfurt, Cologne, Bremen and Wolfsburg. 

Spanish Real estate asset management multi-family office Mazabi has acquired the four-star, 157-room Aragón Hills Hotel & Spa for an undisclosed sum. The hotel sits within the Formigal-Panticosa ski resort, in northern Spain, near the border with France. The asset is part of a longer-term regeneration and unification plan for the four ski resorts in the Tena and Aragon valleys: Canfranc, Candanchú, Astún and Formigal-Panticosa. Mazabi is looking for a suitable operator for the hotel, which will guide its future positioning. Including this acquisition, Mazabi now owns 19 hotels, increasingly focussed on “sea and mountain tourism assets”.

In a related party transaction, Vienna-based real estate investment company S IMMO AG has acquired a Czech Republic portfolio of four assets from CPI Property Group, including three office buildings and the 161-room Courtyard by Marriott Prague City hotel, totalling €167.7 million. The portfolio generates around €8.4m of annual income, of which the hotel accounts for approximately €1.1 million. Central and eastern Europe-focused real estate investor CPI Group holds 88.4% of S IMMO’s shares.

The Fluxà family, owner of the Iberostar Group, has acquired the four-star, 198-room THB Sur Mallorca, on the southeast end of Mallorca, Spain, from the Rigo family. The hotel is set to be operated under the THB brand until it will close in 2024 to undergo significant renovation, including on the area of sustainability, before reopening in May 2025 as an Iberostar hotel. The property includes a restaurant, an outdoor pool and a variety of other sports facilities.

Somani Hotels has acquired the four-star 137-room Aubrey Park Hotel located in St Albans, Hertfordshire, UK. Originally an 18th century farmhouse and set on six acres of grounds, the hotel includes conferencing facilities, a fitness centre, a restaurant and bar, surrounded by woodland and gardens. This acquisition marks Somani Hotels’ third hotel under ownership, with the other two being a 44-room hotel at One Mill Street in Luton and the 79-room The Bell Hotel in Epping, both in the UK.

Tim Barbrook has joined as Head of Debt Advisory, launching the firm’s hotel & leisure debt advisory capabilities across the UK and Europe.

Tim joins HVS HWE from Crosslane Fund Managers where he was Head of Debt Finance focussed on sourcing, executing and monitoring debt finance across a variety of real estate asset classes. Prior to this, he was an Executive Director at Wimmer Financial and a Corporate Banking Manager at Lloyds Banking Group. (Read here)

For the latest in the hospitality industry, please visit: hvs.com. You are also welcome to contact the following personnel.

Russell Kett, Chairman – HVS London

Charles Human, CEO – HVS London/HVS Hodges Ward Elliott

Chris Martin, Senior Director – HVS Hodges Ward Elliott

Sophie Perret, Senior Director – HVS London

Tim Barbrook, Head of Debt Advisory

Florian Kittler, Managing Director – HVS Executive Search Europe & Asia Pacific

Demetris Spanos, Managing Director – HVS Athens

Ezio Poinelli, Director – HVS Milan