Spanish hotel group Eurostars is seeking a long term investment partner to help it expand internationally, both further east in Europe, and across the Americas.
The desire to grow further comes as the group revealed plans in mid 2024, to expand into Morocco, its twentieth country market. Eurostars has secured three hotels in Casablanca, which will open between now and the end of 2025. “Morocco is a very promising market and these hotels will all be new builds strictly following our quality standards,” said Clara Lopez, the group’s director of expansion. Already under construction is the 50 room Eurostars Californie in Casablanca, followed by Eurostars Casa Anfa and a hotel opening under the group’s Exe brand.
A shifting mix
Currently, Eurostars operates 260 hotels across four continents, with a mix of 35% owned by the group, 56% operated under long term leases and the remainder running under management contracts. But, while leases have historically been the preference for landlords in Spain, and are well understood by owners across other key European markets, more are now taking an active interest in property performance.
Lopez expects that mix will change, commenting in a mid 2024 interview: “In a lease agreement, all the responsibility and business risk are ours. Ultimately, owners looking for security usually choose to lease their hotel, while owners seeking to share in profits and are willing to assume market risk usually opt for a management agreement.”
The group has a strong pipeline of properties coming through. In 2025, a new hotel will open in the Spanish city of Valladolid, where a former department store is being converted into a 76 room hotel. And a new build hotel in Rotterdam, with 188 rooms will be completed in the city’s View of Rotterdam development.
In Granada, there are plans for two hotels. The 189 room San Anton hotel in the city will be refurbished and rebranded to relaunch in early 2025. Looking further ahead, the Palacio de los Vargas in Granada will be converted into a Eurostars hotel, due to open in 2026.
Part of a family owned group
Eurostars, which counts as the largest hotel chain in Spain, and the sixth largest in Europe, remains part of a family owned group, Hotusa. Alongside its hotel owning and operating division, Hotusa also owns the established hotel booking platform Restel, and a digital services provider for hotels, Keytel.
Within Eurostars, the parent brand is largely focused on four and five star properties. A second brand, Aurea, offers guests more of a boutique feel, often in hotels making use of historic character buildings. Then the Exe and Ikonik brands occupy the three and four star segment, typically in urban and city centre locations. A budget brand, Crisol, aims to meet the needs of no-frills travellers, while Eurostars also has an aparthotel brand, Tandem Suites.
