4 days ago
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- Travel Daily News
limehome expands through hotel takeovers and conversions
limehome strengthens its market presence by adding several hotel assets across Europe. Multiple hotel properties in A-cities, including Berlin, Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia, completed or nearly completed.
MUNICH – limehome, Europe's leading operator of design accommodations, is stepping up its focus on conversions of vacant and struggling hotels. The company has signed four additional projects in Italy, Spain and Germany, which will bring around 200 new units to market over the next year. These will be added to the expanding portfolio of completed or nearly completed hotel properties in A-tier cities. The next limehome opening of a former hotel is scheduled for fall 2025, with the launch of a newly converted property in Berlin.
Increasing portfolio share of hotel projects
In 2024, limehome took over the former Gold Hotel in Berlin-Friedrichshain as the sole tenant. A total of 42 new units will be available from the fall. This is already the second hotel conversion in the capital, following the property on Stresemannstraße that opened its doors in 2023. The above-average occupancy rate of 93 percent proves the success of the Berlin limehome property.
Following this showcase, limehome will revitalize two adjacent three-star hotels in the southern Italian port city of Bari at Via Piccinni and Via Roberto da Bari with its partners. Just 400 metres apart and steps from the historic centre, both properties will reopen by mid-2026.
On Spain's Costa Blanca, limehome will relaunch the former beachside Hotel Centro Mar on Benidorm's Calle Major by October 2025. Back in Germany, the company is converting a former Ibis hotel in central Jena, Thuringia, into functional design accommodations that will welcome guests in summer 2025. These projects are the latest additions to limehome's growing list of hotel conversions across major European cities, including Barcelona, Basel, Berlin and Prague.
Lease renewals and rising costs prompt landlords to seek alternatives
limehome's increasing focus on hotel takeovers addresses the growing cost facing hospitality operators face due to rising rents and labour costs. limehome's co-founder and co-CEO, Dr. Josef Vollmayr, offers the following insights: 'A significant portion of the estimated seven to eight million hotel rooms in Europe is outdated. At the same time, operating costs have increased by approximately 40 percent. As rental agreements expire – which will be the case for many properties in the coming years – the pressure on tenants is enormous. In this scenario, improving efficiency and modernizing existing properties is crucial to ensure the economic viability of these assets.'
Converting existing buildings rather than building new properties offers a faster, more resource-efficient solution if the future tenant can maximise space and lower operational outlay. limehome's tech driven operating model allows for flexible floor plans and high space efficiency. The company's in-house team of architects, engineers and data scientists increase the net lettable area to around 70 percent, compared to around 50 percent in conventional hotel concepts.
'Our tech-enabled concept combined with deep conversion expertise provides a needed solution for underperforming hotel assets,' says Vollmayr. 'Hotel conversions already represent up to 15 percent of our portfolio and the trend is rising. Due to the increasing cost pressure faced by operators from the mid- to upscale segment, we expect a significant rise in conversion projects within our portfolio over the next few years. The same applies for hotel takeovers.'
Diversified hotel projects for maximum coverage
In addition to new hotel conversions, with which limehome takes over struggling hotel operators and thus enriches the accommodation market, the Munich-based company is also working on new hotel construction projects.
Almost 400 new units are being built in the Spanish tourist centers of Madrid and Barcelona, as well as in Burgos, which is a popular stop on the Way of St. James and is equally interesting for short breaks. Since 2022, limehome has already been successfully managing a hotel accommodation with over 30 units in the Spanish metropolis of Barcelona. Through the mix of conversions and new construction projects, limehome is expanding its own portfolio across the board and demonstrating once again that the hospitality provider's digital concept can be used flexibly and successfully as a solution for the hotel market of tomorrow.
