Hastings Hotels,
Northern Ireland’s leading hotel chain, today unveiled its plans for the latest
addition to its portfolio which will see a £30M
investment and the creation of over 150
new jobs for Belfast.
Last month Hastings
Hotels announced the purchase of Windsor House, one of the tallest buildings in
Ireland, which it will transform into a 200
bedroom hotel, subject to planning permission.
Sir William
Hastings Chairman of Hastings Hotels said: “We are delighted to unveil the
plans for what will be the seventh hotel in our portfolio in Northern Ireland.
“This acquisition
represents our biggest single investment to date of £30M and upon completion in
2018 the hotel will operate at the upper end of the 4-star market offering 200
bedrooms, a restaurant and bar, 18 serviced apartments and a range of superbly
appointed office accommodation. The hotel will create over 150 new jobs.
“This project is
a huge undertaking for Hastings Hotels and it is has only been made possible by
the strength of our existing hotels portfolio and the quality of our staff and
management. It will bring the number of bedrooms in our group to over 1,000
making us the largest privately owned hotel chain on the island of Ireland,”
Sir William said.
“I am also thrilled
to announce that our new hotel will be called the Belfast Grand Central Hotel. The original Grand Central, which also
boasted 200 bedrooms, was built in 1893 and was the thriving hub of Victorian
Belfast as well as the finest hotel in Ireland. Winston Churchill, the King of
Belgium, Al Jolson, Mario Lanza and the Beatles were all guests who enjoyed its
luxurious hospitality. I am extremely
proud to be able to pay tribute to this much loved property of the past by
naming Belfast’s newest hotel after it.
“Today I can
also reveal the new branding for our new hotel, which incorporates the Seahorse.
The Seahorse, part of Belfast’s Coat of Arms, celebrates the City’s Maritime
history. Old photos from the Glory Days
of the Grand Central show the Seahorse motif featuring on menus and plates. Our
new interpretation of this classic Belfast emblem is a permanent reminder of
the new Grand Central’s connection with its elegant past.
“The Belfast Grand Central Hotel will fulfil
the requirement for much needed city centre accommodation in Belfast. Tourism in Northern Ireland continues to
thrive and it is the ideal time to extend our portfolio of hotels with more
high profile events coming to the city as well as an increase in business
tourism which will be helped by the expansion of the Belfast Waterfront next
year,” Sir William added.
Enterprise, Trade and Investment Minister Jonathan Bell
said: “I have been very impressed by
Hastings Hotels vision for its new city centre hotel. This is great news for
Belfast and for Northern Ireland, as the group’s continued investment is a
massive vote of confidence in our tourism sector. The new hotel will add considerably
to the local accommodation offering and allow Northern Ireland to capitalise
further on the growing international business conference market.”
Belfast Lord Mayor Cllr Arder Carson
said: “This is great news for the city. One of our major objectives is
to double the current tourism revenue by 2020 and developments such as this one
by the Hastings Hotels Group are a huge step forward towards achieving that
goal.”
“Hastings Hotels
is well known for its dedication to supporting the local economy and we have
appointed WDR & RT Taggart Architects in Belfast to design the building,
and once planning has been approved, we look forward to working with other
local firms to build and furnish the hotel to the high standards for which our
group is renowned,” Sir William concluded.
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