Global real estate advisor, CBRE, has been appointed to sell the Hilton Prague, the largest branded hotel in the Czech Republic, on behalf of the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation.
The property has been synonymous with the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Events (MICE) market in the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) region since its opening in 1989.
It comprises more than 81,000 m2, 791 refurbished guestrooms, six food and beverage outlets, extensive leisure facilities and approximately 5,000 m2 of conference space.
Hilton Prague has benefitted from the strong resurgence of travel post-pandemic and ownership has invested heavily in its continued success, with over €50 mln invested in the asset since 2018.
Occupying a privileged riverside position where the city centre meets the Karlín office hub, the property is close to the Czech headquarters of renowned global corporations and government agencies.
Ownership has also invested in the prospective further growth of the events business, and the hotel now benefits from planning approval to build a new conference centre extension of a further 5,000 m2, providing significant revenue-growth potential that would cement its position as the leading MICE hotel in the CEE region.
The European MICE hotel market has enjoyed a rapid and unexpected recovery post-pandemic, with fewer events taking place but with larger volumes of delegates in attendance.
According to data from Prague Convention Bureau, 4,900 meetings and conferences were held in Prague last year, with an estimated 691,000 delegates. This represents an increase of 25% and 12%, respectively, when compared to 2022 and is just 3% down on the record delegate numbers achieved in 2019.
Prague has benefitted from the strong return of international events, with the number of international meetings and conferences in the city increasing 54% year-on-year.
'For investors looking for a market landscape with unmet demand, the European MICE market offers healthy, long-term fundamentals,' said Kenneth Hatton, head of hotels, Europe at CBRE.
'However, this sub-sector has suffered from under-investment, resulting in a scarcity of product that is able to meet contemporary demand effectively. As a result, there are few assets in Europe as well-equipped as the Hilton Prague to meet the needs of today’s events market and, with the value levers that will be available to an incoming owner, we anticipate investor interest to be extensive.'
