Hotel group Dalata is to open a new hotel in Madrid, expanding its operations in another gateway city in Europe.
The company announced a lease deal with Grupo Insur that will see Dalata develop a new four-star hotel in Madrid under the Clayton brand.
Situated in Valdebebas, close to the Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas Airport, the 243-bedroom hotel is due to open in the first quarter of 2029. Dalata will operate the hotel through a 15-year lease term, with two five-year tenant extension options.
“Madrid is a leading global travel destination and is a key strategic location in our European expansion strategy,” said deputy chief executive Shane Casserly.
“We are very excited to have secured such an attractive opportunity in one of our target cities in Europe and we look forward to working in partnership with Grupo Insur, one of Spain’s leading real estate companies, to successfully deliver this exciting project.”
The hotel group is holding its annual general meeting in Dublin today.
John Hennessy, chairman of Dalata, said the group had made “great progress” in expanding its presence in the UK, with the opening of four new Maldron hotels in London, Manchester, Liverpool and Brighton.
“Our pipeline of over 1,800 rooms also includes Maldron Hotel Croke Park, Dublin and Clayton Hotel St Andrew’s Square, Edinburgh, which we expect to open next year and the group is in advanced detailed discussions on further opportunities in Berlin and London,” he said.
Although preliminary results predicted “like for like” group revenue per room and Dublin revenue per room would be 2.5 per cent and 5 per cent respectively ahead of the first quarter last year, trading in March had been lower than expected, the group said. Revenue per room on a “like for like” basis for the four-month period between January and April would now be in line with 2024, and ahead by around 3 per cent for Dublin.
The group expects revenue per available room over the next couple of months to weaken compared to May and June last year, following an “exceptionally strong” event calendar in 2024.
The group also said it would watch for any impact on its business from the ongoing political turmoil and fallout from the US tariff plan.
“Given what we know today, we remain confident in our outlook for the economy and the hospitality industry within it,” Mr Hennessy said. “We recognise the uncertainty around tariffs but note the economy is in a healthy position with a significant Government surplus and strong employment growth.”
He also welcomed the suspension of the passenger cap at Dublin Airport and the introduction of the Short-Term Letting and Tourism Bill which will require all short-term accommodation providers to be registered.
Looking at the UK, revenue per room in the year to date is 2.5 per cent behind the same period last year on a like for like basis, with properties hit by a reduction in transient leisure demand.
A strategic review of Dalata’s business announced in March is ongoing.
