London’s iconic Great Northern Hotel has again changed hands, with new owners looking to combine ownership with substantial other land interests in the same area of London.
The 88 room luxury hotel’s long leasehold interest has been bought by King’s Cross Group, for a reported GBP20 million. The same group, which is owned by a major Australian pension fund, AustralianSuper, already controls a major part of the 67 acre King’s Cross estate, an urban regeneration area around King’s Cross and St Pancras stations in north London.
A New Long Term Owner
Having taken an interest in the area with an investment in 2025, King’s Cross CEO Leo Shapland said that taking control of the hotel was a natural next step: “Bringing the asset back under aligned ownership with the wider estate strengthens our ability to continually evolve the neighborhood, while securing diversified long-term income. During the last year, we have built a business that benefits from capital to deploy and the expertise of a world-class team focused on active stewardship.”
Guests arriving at the hotel will see little immediate change, however. The property will continue to be operated by Turkish group Kaya Hotels, which has just agreed a long term lease as part of the disposal sale. Kaya bought the hotel in 2024 from seller Intriva Capital Advisors; up until that time, the property had been operating as an independent hotel, but affiliated with the Tribute Portfolio, one of Marriott’s collection brands.
One of the original UK railway hotels, the Great Northern first opened in 1854. More recently, it was brought back to luxury hotel use by investors who relaunched it in 2013.
The hotel sits within a highly competitive London hotel market, where several new luxury hotels are joining the fray. Independent property The Newman has recently opened, along with IHG’s Six Senses The Whiteley. Other hotels, including The Leonard, and The Landmark are undergoing refurbishments, to maintain their respective places in the market.
Later in 2026, two new hotels will launch alongside the city’s Olympia events and conference centre. These are the 204 room Hyatt Regency, and 146 room CitizenM hotels.
Upcoming Luxury Launches in London
New brands are also set to make their first appearances. Ennismore will launch its Delano London hotel, in the final quarter of the year, bringing a touch of Miami Beach style to the UK capital. And Minor Hotels has chosen London as the launch location for its new Colbert Collection. A former bank building on the city’s famed Piccadilly is being converted, to create a flagship for the new luxury brand.
Looking further ahead, projects in development for completion in 2028 include Montcalm at the Brewery, which will upgrade and expand the existing Montcalm hotel at the former brewery in Chiswell Street. Plans include growing the room count at the hotel from 213 to 221 rooms. The luxury Oberoi brand is also set to launch in London, with a small boutique hotel. The property will be developed by joint venture partners Grosvenor and Mitsui Fudosan UK, on a prime site in Mayfair.
