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Hotels and leisure

Market leading expertise in the hotels and leisure sector, combining industry insights with outstanding legal experience to provide tailored solutions and best outcomes for clients. 

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Our market leading hotels and leisure team represents investors, developers, owners, operators and lenders in key parts of the hotel and leisure industries. We advise hotels, holiday parks, golf courses, residences, restaurants, pubs and clubs, and visitor attractions across the UK.  

Combining broad commercial expertise with deep industry knowledge, we deliver clear, commercial, high-quality advice on all aspects of acquisitions and disposals (including joint venturing and co-investment arrangements), development, financing, operational matters, management agreements and hotel franchise agreements.    

Our expertise includes corporate, commercial, real estate, construction, banking, tax, licensing, employment, health and safety, and litigation services, meaning we can support your hotel or leisure project across the whole lifecycle. We advise in all three UK jurisdictions, including on portfolio transactions with a cross-border element. We also frequently guide international clients throughout strategic UK investment and development opportunities.   

  • Corporate transactions: Managing mergers, acquisitions, demergers and other corporate activities, including joint venturing and co-investments. 
  • Employment and immigration: Supporting on strategic employment law issues, grievances and disputes, and international employment matters. 
  • Finance: Managing financing transactions across the capital stack from the perspective of both lenders and borrowers.  
  • Real estate acquisition, disposal and asset management: Advising on a broad range of transactions, from single asset matters to complex portfolio transactions.   
  • Health and safety and regulation: Advising on health and safety compliance.  
  • Licensing: Ensuring compliance with licensing laws.  
  • Management agreements: Structuring and negotiating hotel management agreements and franchising arrangements. 

Our team

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Examples of our work

Abu Dhabi Investment Authority

Advising a wholly owned subsidiary of ADIA on the sale of 33 UK Marriott International hotels to a joint venture between KKR and The Baupost Group.

Pandox

Advising Pandox, one of the largest hotel property owners in Europe, on the £49 million acquisition and financing of DoubleTree by Hilton in Edinburgh City Centre.

Virgin Hotels

Advising on the acquisition of the Mondrian Hotel in Shoreditch, which has been rebranded under the Virgin Hotels Collection name.

Zetland Capital

Advising on the acquisition and subsequent refinance of the 338-bedroom Macdonald Manchester Hotel, the 156-bedroom Macdonald Holyrood Hotel, and a number of pub portfolios in and around London.

Atlas Hotels

Advising on numerous significant hotel investment transactions including the corporate acquisition of the Chardon Group and the £253 million sale and leaseback of a Holiday Inn Express portfolio. 

Portobello Pub Company

Advising the Portobello Pub Company on the corporate acquisition of Darwin & Wallace Limited, which owns and operates a portfolio of bars and restaurants across London.

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What others say

“The team has a really good grasp of the commercial and practical operations of hotels and how to finance them.”

Chambers UK 2024

“Burges Salmon really understands the hotel industry and we value that insight.”

Cedric Cheah Vice President of YTL Hotels

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Insights

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Licensing and gaming

We also have legal expertise in all aspects of licensing law and gaming law compliance, unlocking commercial opportunities across a range of sectors.

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