Scottish hotels check in with £25m investment

Two prime hotels in Edinburgh and Glasgow are to undergo a £25 million makeover and rebranding as part of a deal with industry giant Hilton.

The Carlton Hotel on Edinburghs North Bridge is to have a 15m facelift

Amaris Hospitality, the hotel investment group, is to pump £15m into the transformation of the four-star Carlton, which sits on Edinburgh’s North Bridge, on the site of the former Patrick Thomson’s department store. It will be branded the Hilton Edinburgh Carlton.

Meanwhile, the agreement between Amaris and Hilton Worldwide also involves a £10m investment and rebranding of Glasgow City Hotel, which will become DoubleTree by Hilton Glasgow Central.

Under the new deal, Amaris Hospitality will also rebrand the 239-bedroom Jurys Inn Custom House hotel in Dublin to Hilton Garden Inn Dublin Custom House.

The investment in the three hotels forms part of a £100m capital investment programme the group is currently undertaking to transform, rebrand and reposition more than 20 hotels in its 89-strong portfolio of properties.

This includes adding eight hotels to the Jurys Inn hotel chain as well as converting 11 hotels to the Mercure brand. John Brennan, chief executive of Amaris Hospitality, said: “We’re delighted to have the opportunity to undertake such an exciting programme to restore these two iconic Scottish hotels to their former glory.

“This initiative will leverage their prime city centre locations, a significant investment programme and Hilton’s upscale brands to further optimise future revenues and deliver exceptional service to our guests. The quality of our leadership team and the employees within these hotels, working in conjunction with our new partners in Hilton Worldwide, will ensure a smooth and seamless transition for our guests and we hope to complete the transformation of these properties by the third quarter of 2016.”

Amaris Hospitality was formed earlier this year to manage Lone Star’s UK hotel assets, including Jurys Inn.

The group has more than 15,000 rooms, employs some 8,000 people and its business divisions have combined revenues totalling in excess of £450m.

Patrick Fitzgibbon, senior vice-president, development, Europe and Africa for Hilton Worldwide, added: “The ongoing success of our three existing hotels with Amaris Hospitality, added to this new agreement, reflects the incredible impact of converting under our brands.”