The Case for Hotel Conversions: Opportunity, Risk, and the Importance of Getting It Right
Hotel conversions continue to attract strong interest, particularly in established towns and city centres where suitable sites for new build development are limited. Converting existing buildings can offer compelling advantages, but they also come with a distinct set of risks that need to be fully understood from the outset.
Why Conversions Appeal
One of the key drivers behind hotel conversions is planning certainty. In many cases, a change of use can be more straightforward than securing consent for a new build, and demolition may be reduced or avoided altogether. This can help simplify planning risk and shorten programme times.
There is also a strong sustainability argument. Reusing existing structures is typically far less carbon intensive than demolishing and rebuilding, making conversions an attractive option for developers looking to reduce embodied carbon and align with ESG objectives.
The Reality Behind the Headlines
Despite these advantages, conversions are not inherently cheaper than new build projects. In fact, they are often more expensive.
Existing buildings bring constraints that can compromise efficiency and value. Slab heights may limit ceiling volumes and restrict design flexibility. Integrating modern building services into older structures is frequently complex, particularly where floor zones are tight or construction methods are unfamiliar.
Access and servicing are also critical considerations. Deliveries, waste management, plant access, and daily hotel operations must all function within the constraints of the existing site; something that is often underestimated at early feasibility stage.
Perhaps most importantly, conversions carry a high degree of unknown risk. Structural condition, fire strategy compliance, acoustic performance, asbestos, and the capacity of existing fabric all need to be thoroughly analysed as early as possible. This requires upfront investment from developers to fully understand what they are undertaking, and this can sometimes provide answers that derail the project. These are not desktop exercises. They require intrusive surveys and a willingness to properly interrogate the building.
Why Conversions Go Wrong
In our experience, conversion projects tend to fail for the same reasons:
- The building is overpaid for, with risk not adequately priced in
- Insufficient effort is made to fully understand construction and compliance challenges
- Decisions are taken too early, based on assumptions rather than evidence
- Developers focus on benefits and underestimate the risks
- Clients focus on what consultants want them to hear rather than what they need to hear e.g. un-realistic pricing, simplification of complex issues
When these factors combine, contingency is quickly eroded and value is compromised.
A Hands On Approach Is Essential
Working with existing building fabric is always challenging. Successful hotel conversions demand a team that is prepared to go beyond desk top studies and get into the bowels of the building. You cannot design a good conversion solely from plans or from behind a desk.
Understanding a building’s proportions, structure, materials, and limitations requires time spent inside the building itself. It requires expertise, curiosity, and a hands on approach to identifying risks early and designing around them intelligently.
Conclusion
Hotel conversions can deliver outstanding results, both commercially and environmentally, but only when approached with realism and rigour. Early analysis, experienced consultants, and a deep understanding of existing fabric are not optional, they are fundamental to success.
Done well, conversions unlock value that new build projects often cannot. Done poorly, they are an expensive lesson.
