Datala Hotel Group said, which operates the Maldron and Clayton hotel brands, said its Revenue per Available Room (RevPAR) is expected to be 4% behind 2023 for the period of January to April this year.
In an update ahead of its AGM today, the hotel group said that during 2023, it added a hotel in Amsterdam, two hotels in London and secured a building conversion opportunity in Edinburgh - which it said represented three very commercially attractive cities in its target markets.
"In 2023, we successfully protected margins despite the cost inflationary environment and reduced carbon emissions per room sold whilst maintaining strong customer and employee feedback scores," the company's chairman John Hennessy said.
Dalata said that 2024 has started with a good performance for its UK portfolio which is expected to achieve modest Revenue per Available Room (RevPAR) growth on the same time last year.
But the company, which is the country's biggest hotel group, said it was seeing lower levels of trade here.
It said that while the Dublin market continues to digest the impact of new supply, trade improved during March compared to January and February.
Dalata said the timing and nature of events compared to last year, including the visit of the US President here, as well as the increased VAT rate from September 2023 has had an impact during the first four months.
It added that RevPAR is expected to be 4% behind 2023 for the period of January to April on a 'like for like' basis.
"As we look ahead, we remain optimistic in our outlook for the remainder of the year where trade typically is driven by stronger seasonal factors, supported by a strong events calendar, flight schedules and forward bookings for May and June," the chairman said.
"We also look forward to the greater contribution from the ten hotels added to the portfolio since 2022 as they mature and the additional contribution from the four new hotels opening this year," he added.
John Hennessey also said the company will open four new Maldron hotels across the UK later this year, all centrally located in its target cities of Liverpool, Brighton, Manchester and London.
"We remain focussed on growing in 11 key cities in the UK and establishing a presence in targeted large European cities with a strong mix of corporate and leisure demand," he added
