Premier Inn is looking for significant growth in Ireland and is actively looking for new hotel locations in Dublin, Limerick, Galway and Killarney.
The Whitbread Group-owned budget hotel chain – already big across the UK and Ireland – unveiled its Irish expansion plans on the back of it announcing its latest Dublin hotel.
Whitbread has bought the long leasehold interest of a development site at Sandyford Business Park in Dublin; marking the company’s first acquisition in the outer Dublin area.
The group sees Ireland has having potential for around 3,500 Premier Inn bedrooms. It currently has more than 1,600 bedrooms either trading or in its pipeline.
Matt Gent, Development Manager for Whitbread in Ireland, said: “Finding business-friendly locations for our customers is an important part of our growth strategy in Ireland, and we have selected a superb location for our debut in Outer Dublin at Sandyford Business Park.
“The Park has a lack of affordable branded hotel accommodation that Premier Inn provides, and I am confident we will trade well from the location.”
Mr Gent said: “We are working with the existing occupier of the site as we bring forward a planning application for the development and I hope to be in a position to start building our first Premier Inn in Outer Dublin next year, all being well.”
Whitbread intends to submit a planning application to Dublin City Council in the New Year. The site is currently occupied by The Wall Climbing Gym.
The largest Premier Inn in Dublin city centre – at North Docklands, with 262 bedrooms – opened its doors to guests on December 11 and the company is gearing up to open its first Premier Inn outside of the capital, in Cork, early in the New Year.
“One of the hallmarks of Whitbread’s success in Ireland has been its flexibility in acquiring development sites and this Sandyford acquisition continues the trend with a long leasehold acquisition in a location which is under-served by budget hotels and is sure to do well for Premier Inn,” said Isobel Horan, Senior Vice President in the Hotels and Hospitality Group at JLL, which represented Whitbread on the acquisition.
