Madrid-based European real estate investment manager Azora has acquired two urban hostels in Dublin and Barcelona.
Jacobs Inn Dublin and Jacobs Inn Barcelona add 85 keys and 557 beds to Azora’s 12,000-key, 41-asset portfolio.
The purchase was made on behalf of the Azora European Hotel and Lodging Fund (AEHL) through a transaction with a fund managed by BlackRock. Jacobs Inn is its first Irish hotel deal.
Arora targets urban hotels
Urban hostels are a key target for Azora’s hospitality strategy, which aims to combine 4-star hotel service with the social interaction offered by a premium hostel.
The portfolio was previously operated by Siggis Capital, a boutique European investment, development and management platform.
Both hostels are sold unencumbered and will be operated by Latroupe, a pan-European hostel operator created by Azora’s hospitality fund that currently operates three assets and 700 beds in Madrid, Bilbao, and Brussels.
More than €3 billion invested
Since 2011, Azora has become one of the leading hospitality and leisure investors in Europe, having acquired over 100 hotels and 26,000 hotel keys and invested over €3 billion in the hospitality sector. Azora’s strategy targets high-quality hotels, urban hostels and businesses that may need active management and repositioning, where it partners with leading operators.
Azora launched its first private equity fund for hospitality, Azora European Hotel & Lodging in 2021, with €815 million in capital. Since then, AEHL has invested in the vacation hotel segment in major European destinations with a value-add strategy based on asset transformation and active management of hotel operations. More recently, the fund has also begun to utilise an alternative hotel strategy for urban tourism aimed at travellers of all ages.
Azora was advised by Pinsent Masons, KPMG and Arcadis and BlackRock was advised by JLL, Colliers, Matheson LLP, CMS and PwC.
Rare opportunity
Concha Osácar, one of Azora’s Founding Partners, says, “This acquisition represents a rare opportunity to acquire an urban portfolio in two attractive destinations which benefit from strong domestic and international tourism. The transaction also provides us with the chance to expand Latroupe’s footprint and to continue consolidating our urban hostels portfolio as a key part of our wider hospitality strategy through the entry into important new markets such as Ireland.”
Carlos Cano, Latroupe’s Managing Director, says, “The transaction highlights Latroupe’s ambition to keep growing and adding new assets to the platform across some of the most consolidated European destinations. We are actively seeking new investment opportunities through the purchase of existing assets and through management agreements with property owners who want to leverage on Latroupe’s technology and know-how to grow their business. Our aim is to be the reference brand for our customers when they travel in Europe, thanks to the quality of our service and our promise to connect travellers with the best of the local scene in each city.”
