Deal Agreed to Kick-Start £180m Manchester Hotel District

Date: April 2018

Location: Manchester Airport, UK

Name: Holiday Inn and Ibis Budget

No. of Keys: 280 (HI) and 262 (Ibis)

Developer: An agreement to kick-start the development of a £180m hotel district at Airport City Manchester has been struck.

Joint venture partners at Airport City Manchester will act as the developer on behalf of P1 Hotels; a consortium of highly-experienced hospitality industry specialists.

The scheme forms part of a wider £1bn transformation programme.

The plans being submitted follows consent being secured earlier this year for the creation of a 375-bed and 254-bed hotel on a site located adjacent to Manchester Airport’s transport interchange.

As such, the hotel district would comprise 1,171 rooms and support the creation of about 500 jobs.

Lynda Shillaw, chief executive of MAG Property and Airport City JV Partner, said: “We are delighted to have reached an agreement with the consortium that will mark the start of the development of our new £180m hotel district at Airport City Manchester.

“Increasing the number of hotels at the airport is underpinned by the significant growth that we have seen in both passenger numbers and airlines over the last five years. The development is being brought forward alongside the £1bn investment in Terminal 2 and the airport being made by MAG at the start of a period of significant development at Airport City.”

The 280-room Holiday Inn Manchester Airport will feature the brand’s signature Open Lobby, which combines the front desk, restaurant, bar, lounge and business centre into one versatile area. Room types will include standard, twin, family, executive and accessible.

Ibis Budget’s venue will be seven storeys, with guests able to utilise a restaurant proposed for the ground floor of the Holiday Inn.

Construction is expected to start in early 2019 with completion scheduled for Q1 2021, which will create in the region of 250 jobs.

Councillor Susan Quinn, chair of GMPF Property Working Group at Greater Manchester Pension Fund (GMPF) and Airport City Joint Venture Partner, added: “This is a unique site within Airport City Manchester and we have seen strong demand from international investors looking to capitalise on the recent growth and opportunities at Manchester Airport.

“Driven by the £30m+ equity investment already committed by the JV partners, this signals the start of the next stage of activity at Airport City.”

The professional team includes ICA as architect; Faithful & Gould as project manager/employers agent; Meinhardt as structural, services and sustainability engineer; NBM as cost consultant; Rusupo as project manager/client’s representative; Manchester Airports Group as planner, and Aecom as highways engineer.

The purchaser was represented by CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang (London); Airport City by Eversheds Sutherland; and MAG by CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang (Manchester). JLL and CBRE are retained lettings and sales agents for Airport City.

THPT Comment: Major play for a new hotel district in Manchester, confirming it’s position as the UK’s 2nd city.

First Seen: Insider Media