“Do I look older?” jokes JP Kavanagh, general manager of the five-star Shelbourne Hotel, which overlooks St Stephen’s Green in the heart of Dublin city centre.
He’s referring to the years-long planning of a €50-million renovation of the 202-year-old hotel, a process that began under its previous owners Kennedy Wilson and was signed off by Archer Capital, which paid a reported €260 million two years ago to acquire the property.
In phase one, some 80 bedrooms are being completely gutted, which means about 30 per cent of his inventory has been taken out of commission.
“That’s happening as we speak and will ramp up over the next couple of weeks. For me, it will be the easy part in some respects. The planning and everything that goes into it in advance I always find is the most challenging bit.”
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It is not just guests who will be getting enhanced facilities; there will be “bigger and better locker rooms and a bigger canteen” for the near-500 staff (including seasonal staff) who typically work in the property over the course of a year.
“It will have a big impact on those of us working in the hotel, and ultimately the customer should feel that as well and we can deliver a better service.”
The Shelbourne has 265 rooms, all of them are getting a makeover except for 40 that were renovated in 2017. “They are still fabulous,” he says, adding that every 17 weeks, without fail, its rooms are taken out of the system for some “minor works” by the in-house maintenance team to keep them in tip-top shape.
“The suites here are like a good pair of shoes – if you mind them they’ll last you for years.”
We are having lunch in the Saddle Room restaurant, which is also due to be renovated, along with the spa and swimming pool and other elements of the ground floor operation.
“We hope to have it all finished, touch wood, by the end of Q1 [2027],” he says as we are delivered a pre-starter of sourdough bread with crab and caviar on top. It’s delicious.
What does having 80 rooms out of commission mean for room rates and occupancy?
While the hotel will take a financial hit from so many bedrooms being closed, it is helped by the fact that 35 per cent of its income is derived from its ground floor bars, restaurants, functions and a spa. These are unaffected for now.
“It’s almost like running two businesses, particularly when 80 per cent of custom on the ground floor is locals.”
With so many rooms out of action, and demand greater than supply, is he able to put up room rates?
“I wouldn’t say I’m putting them up. There are market forces at play but that’s an obvious and fair assumption as well. My average rate will be higher because I have fewer rooms and [a lot of] the ones that I have are suites.”
The average room rate, on an annual basis, would be €400-plus, he says. About 10 per cent of its mix is suites, when all the rooms are open for business.
Its top-of-the-range Princess Grace suite is listed at an eye-watering €5,000 a night. “The occupancy in that room is quite high. We’d probably be selling it two weeks in a month.”
He says demand is good and Dublin is performing “quite well at the moment”.
“Americans are still travelling. We had a very strong April.”
This time last year, the business was grappling with what he calls the “Trump effect”, which resulted in him cancelling all Government travel.
“We had a couple of direct hits at short notice so this time last year was softer than normal but has recovered fully this year. The American market remains strong for us.”
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More than 50 per cent of the Shelbourne’s business comes from the US on an annual basis.
“We’d be quite busy in November, December, January with locals. We’d have the [Six Nations] rugby in February, March and then once Paddy’s Day is gone, that’s it. The Americans start coming.”
According to Kavanagh, Americans “feel welcome here” and see Ireland as “value”.
“It’s certainly cheaper than in the States,” he adds, as our starters arrive. Mine is a cured salmon starter. It’s light and fresh.
Will the Ryder Cup generate business for the Shelbourne when it is hosted in September next year at Adare Manor in Limerick?
“There will be lots of pre and post business, just like when the Open [golf Major] was hosted in Portrush. We felt it as well. It’s fantastic that it’s coming here. The eyes of the world will be on us so I hope they take the opportunity to show what we have to offer, not just the golf course.”
Kavanagh has been GM at the Shelbourne since 2018 and the strategy on his watch has been to “actively” reduce the occupancy while increasing the rate to help “mind the property”.
The occupancy rate was 90 per cent when he joined but is now between 83 and 85 per cent on a full-year basis. “It means we can manage the asset so much better. You can’t chase every star.”
Kavanagh’s vision for the Shelbourne was to “achieve approachable luxury”, with a “warmth of hospitality” that isn’t “intimidating or standoffish”.
“That’s why so many locals come in to the Shelbourne. Because they feel comfortable and our resident guests love that,” he says, as our lamb main course is delivered. It’s tender and moist with a dollop of creamy mash and a side of tenderstem broccoli that has a nice crunch to it.
One of the reasons for the Shelbourne’s success over the past couple of centuries has been its ability to move with the times while retaining its old-world charm.
How is the Shelbourne deploying artificial intelligence?
“We’re at the early stages of it at the moment. Marriott work with [Microsoft’s] Copilot. If you’re looking for trends on food and beverage it saves you the hassle of doing it.
“AI can’t do a lot of what I do but, used appropriately, it can help so my output might be greater. But I don’t think AI is going to impact the chef too much,” he says.
What about robots serving food in the Saddle Room? “I think it will be a while before you see that in the Shelbourne.”
Or robot vacuum cleaners? “We have no robots whatsoever. The problem with this hotel is that we are so old and we have lots of steps. There’s only one bedroom floor that you can navigate without encountering steps,” he says as we eschew dessert and order coffees.
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We close with his thoughts on the outlook for the hotel and the Irish economy. “If the Shelbourne is a barometer, it’s good. We have contracts signed up for 2027 and 2028, money down, nothing to do with the Ryder Cup or anything like that.
“My competition is often the Merrion or the Westbury [in Dublin] but sometimes my competition is in another city. And we have to keep that in mind.
“Ireland is still a compelling offering, it’s an authentic offering. The biggest outbound market in the world [the US] has an emotional connection to this country, we speak the same language, they feel welcome here. So that helps. Aer Lingus does a great job on connectivity. So I would be positive about the outlook.”
