Dalata Hotel Group has announced the signing of its seventh hotel in London, the upcoming Maldron Kensington, which will open in 2029.
The four star property will be created from the conversion of an existing vacant office block in the west of central London, in an area expected to benefit from the redevelopment of the nearby Olympia exhibition and events centre. It will feature around 370 rooms, along with four star hotel facilities including a restaurant, bar, gym and a business centre.
Working With a Development Partner
A long standing development partner of the Dalata Group, McAleer & Rushe Property, will undertake the conversion and extension works, with Dalata leasing the completed project. Plans include a significant upgrade to the existing building structure, with an all-electric heating and cooling system to be installed, featuring the latest heat pump technology. The development team aims to deliver a building that will score a BREEAM “Excellent” accreditation.
The location is expected to generate considerable new business from the GBP1.3 billion redevelopment of the Olympia site, just minutes away. It will feature an exhibition centre with capacity for 26,000 delegates, a 3,800 seat entertainment arena and a 1,575 seat theatre. These demand drivers are expected to draw in around 12 million visitors a year, many of whom will want to stay locally overnight.
While the Dalata team continues to manage plans for new openings of its Maldron and Clayton hotels, the business continues to undergo substantial changes, following a take private deal agreed in 2025. That saw the previously listed Dalata acquired by Scandinavian hotel owner Pandox, in a deal supported by investor Eiendomsspar.
As part of the acquisition agreement, it was planned that the operational side of the Dalata business would be absorbed by another Scandinavian hotel group, Scandic. The process of integrating the Dalata hotel operations is ongoing, and so the Maldron Kensington will launch with Scandic at the helm.
“London is one of Europe’s most dynamic hotel markets, and this new Maldron hotel represents another important step as we expand our hotel brands in the UK,” said Jens Mathiesen, CEO of Scandic Hotels Group. “As we integrate the hotel brands into the Scandic multi‑brand portfolio and operating platform, developments like this demonstrate the strength of our business to grow in key gateway cities across Europe.”
A Schedule of Upcoming Openings
The Dalata team still have plenty to focus on during 2026, with three hotel openings planned. In Dublin, it will open the Maldron Hotel Croke Park, a 200 room hotel alongside the city’s famous Croke Park sports stadium.
There will also be two additions to the Clayton hotel brand. In Edinburgh, a 172 room hotel will open mid year, created from the upgrading of a listed building overlooking the city’s St Andrew’s Square. And, noting Dalata’s desires to expand across mainland Europe, there will be the launch of Clayton Berlin. Owners of the former Novotel Berlin Am Tiergarten will be refurbishing the 274 room property for a new life as the latest addition to the Clayton portfolio.
