Rendering for the planned H15 Palace, a Luxury Collection Hotel in Krakow, Poland Photo Credit: Marriott International
Marriott International is seeing a wave of interest from independent hoteliers and investors in Europe, and expects to add nearly 100 hotels by the end of 2026 via conversions and adaptive reuse of existing buildings. Those properties, which account for more than 12,000 rooms, represent more than 40 percent of the company's European development pipeline, executives noted at the International Hospitality Forum in Berlin.
It's a robust growth plan, particularly for a region where independent properties traditionally have flourished. Marriott's European footprint currently consists of more than 800 properties, accounting for nearly 150,000 rooms, across 25 brands in 47 countries and territories.
Conversions and adaptive reuse projects are gaining traction in particular in Italy, the United Kingdom, Spain and Turkey, across all of Marriott's brand segments. More than one fifth of the projects in these categories that are expected to open over the time frame are in the premium Tribute Portfolio and Autograph Collection brands — speaking to the opportunities Marriott is offering independent hotels to take advantage of Marriott's sales and marketing channels.
More than one quarter of the projects will be in the select segment, including Moxy, AC Hotels by Marriott, Four Points by Sheraton and Residence Inn by Marriott, which generally do not offer a great deal of meeting space. Luxury properties are seeing interest, too, however, with the Luxury Collection, W Hotels, Ritz-Carlton and St. Regis brands representing more than 10 percent of projects.
"We are seeing significant interest from independent hoteliers, developers and investors looking to leverage the efficiencies and advantages of renovating and rebranding existing hotels and properties," explained Jerome Briet, the company's chief development officer for Europe, Middle East & Africa. "Adding an existing property to our portfolio provides access to Marriott Bonvoy — our well-established loyalty program — our sales and marketing platforms and our global customer base."
Many of the existing properties will maintain their established characters. "We are particularly seeing momentum across the Luxury Collection, Autograph Collection and Tribute Portfolio brands, which allow hotels an opportunity to keep their identity and personality while pulling into the power of Marriott’s global systems."