EIRE: 'Italy needs to overcome bureaucratic hurdles'

Delays in granting hotel projects operating permits are causing operational headaches and is adding to administration costs for hoteliers opening properties in Italy.

'We have development projects which have been blocked and have been waiting for approval since 2009,' Alan Martin, senior director of development Southern Europe at Hilton Group, told delegates of the Expo Italia Real Estate trade fair in Milan this week.

Hilton has been active in Italy for 50 years, having opened its first hotel in Rome in the early 1960s. The group currently manages a total of 19 hotels in the country, with another six facilities in the pipeline, he added.

Chema Basterrechea, CEO of Spanish chain NH Hoteles, agrees that getting the green light is a major issue in Italy but added that the market remains attractive for hoteliers for a number of other reasons.

'Hotel chains have yet to gain a strong presence in Italy and the market is very fragmented. Qualitative standards are low and many properties are obsolete. This is a market with tremendous opportunities for those chains which are able to overcome the initial problems.'

With 52 hotels and a total of 8,239 hotel rooms in Italy, NH Hoteles is the largest hotel chain in the country. The Italian unit represents a joint venture between NH Hotels and Intesa SanPaolo bank.