Hotel, travel and transactions news from around the European region: Frogmore and C1 Capital acquire three UK hotels including the Hilton London Olympias and more...

Frogmore and C1 Capital acquire three UK hotels including the Hilton London Olympia
UK real estate fund manager Frogmore along with London-based hotel co-investor C1 Capital have announced the acquisition of three UK hotels, headed by the 405-room Hilton London Olympia for £130m (£321,000 per room). The other assets being acquired are the 146-room Park Inn by Radisson Northampton for £15m (£103,000 per room) and the 97-room Stifford Hall near Thurrock for £7.2m (£74,000 per room). All three hotels were acquired for Frogmore’s fourth value-add fund, FREP IV, and formed the second tranche of acquisitions for the new fund following residential investments in Galliard Homes. Frogmore and their partners have committed some £70 million in equity to reposition and rebrand or extend the hotel assets.

BNP Paribas REIM acquires Club Med de l’Alpe d’Huez in France from Lagune
BNP Paribas REIM, through one of its property funds, SCPI Accimmo Pierre, has acquired the Club Med de l’Alpe d’Huez, situated in the Grands Rousses massif in Isère, France, from Lagune, an investment vehicle managed by Luxembourg-based Batipart. The price was not disclosed. The four-star, 442-room hotel reopened at the end of 2019 following an extensive renovation to reposition it from three to four tridents (four-stars). Capital investments totalled €87 million and the works were completed over a period of 18 months. The all-inclusive family resort, located at an altitude of 1,860 metres, includes two restaurants, a wellness area with indoor swimming pool and childcare and kid’s facilities, over a total area of some 38,400 sqm.

LaSalle provides funding for Premier Inn Hammersmith in London
LaSalle Investment Management has provided funding for the development of a £50 million, 189-room Premier Inn hotel in Hammersmith, in west London, to London-based investment manager Legal & General. The project will include two street level retail tenancies, a Bar & Block restaurant and a Costa Pronto. Legal & General will remain in place to complete the development project of turning the five-storey “Brook House” office building into a hotel and F&B tenancies, located just 100 metres from the Hammersmith underground station.

Midstar acquires Scandic Täby in Sweden from Maxus
Swedish hotel investor and asset manager Midstar Hotels AB has acquired the Scandic Täby, located 10km north of Stockholm, Sweden, from Stockholm-based Maxus AB for an undisclosed sum. The hotel, built in 1982, features 170 hotel rooms, four meeting rooms, restaurant & bar, gym and parking, and has recently completed a two-storey extension. The town of Täby is undergoing an extensive urban development with 10,000 new homes being added in the coming years. Midstar’s portfolio now includes 15 hotels in Sweden, eight in Norway and four in Denmark, totalling 4,263 rooms.

LXi sells Premier Inn Saffron Walden in England to UK pension fund
London-based LXi REIT has sold a 70-room Premier Inn hotel that forms part of a mixed-use scheme in Saffron Walden, a market town located 15 miles south of Cambridge in England, to an unnamed UK pension fund for £19.3 million. As well as Premier Inn, the tenants include variety store chain B&M, Costa Coffee, Pets at Home and Pure Gym. The price reportedly reflects a yield of 4.45%. LXi acquired the site for £15.8 million in 2019 through a forward funding deal and the sale generated a 19% per annum IRR for the REIT. Premier Inn Hotels agreed a 25-year lease (with a tenant break right at year 20) from completion of the building works. Following several delays due to the pandemic, the hotel opened in the second half of 2021.

Fidera Vecta and Weight Partners acquire Wyck Hill House Hotel & Spa in the UK
Private equity investors Fidera Vecta and Weight Partners Capital have acquired the 60-bedroom Wyck Hill House Hotel & Spa just south of the Cotswold town of Stow-on-the-Wold in England, off a guide price of £7.5 million. The Grade II listed historic country house hotel is nestled within 50 acres of grounds and features a 2-AA rosette fine dining restaurant, a bar, conferencing facilities and a spa. Following the acquisition, the new owners intend to undertake a substantial renovation.

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