Marriott International to open £25m first hotel in Northern Ireland
The 188-bedroom AC Hotel by Marriott Belfast will feature a restaurant, bar/lounge, fitness facilities, and meeting rooms.
The site will also offer views of Titanic Belfast and SS Nomadic, and will be located near busy office spaces, which will see it aim to become a sought-after conference destination.
Construction work has now started on the site, with Gilbert Ash appointed as contractor for this stage of the project.
The news comes as tourist board VisitBelfast claimed that the demand for hotel rooms in the city has risen significantly, with room sales topping one million last year, and room occupancy over 78 per cent.
Gerry Lennon, chief executive of Visit Belfast said: “We welcome the news that Marriott International has been selected to operate the hotel in City Quays. This is a welcome addition to Belfast’s growing portfolio of hotels [and] it is vital that the city maintains a mixture of recognised brands and independent hotels. The last decade has seen tremendous growth in Belfast’s tourism industry.”
Paul Thomas, director of international development at Marriott International, said: “This will be the first AC Hotel by Marriott in Northern Ireland, demonstrating our commitment to opening design-led hotels in thriving destinations where we see growing demand from discerning travellers seeking a refreshed hotel experience. We look forward to being part of this exciting and flourishing city.”
Although this will be its first in Northern Ireland, Marriott has two hotels in The Republic of Ireland, namely The Shelbourne Dublin ‒ A Renaissance Hotel, and the Powerscourt Hotel, which is part of the group’s Autograph Collection, in Co. Wicklow.
The groups’ flagship UK hotels include the five-star 420-bedroom JW Marriott Grosvenor House, and the five-star, 245-bedroom, historic St Pancras Renaissance Hotel. The company was recently in the headlines after being blocked from its planned $13.6bn takeover of Starwood Hotels & Resorts by Chinese authorities, for up to 60 days.
