With fewer than 1,300 hotel guest bedrooms available within Kilkenny and its immediate environs, according to Fáilte Ireland, the sale of a site in the heart of the medieval city with full planning permission for a new 114-bedroom hotel should see strong interest from a range of potential buyers. The site is being offered to the market by John Ryan of licensed and hospitality specialists BDM Property, at a guide price of €3.75 million.

The proposed hotel scheme provides for the development on the site at John’s Green and Wolfe Tone Street of a five-storey, 114-bedroom hotel and the construction of a new bar and restaurant pavilion within the grounds. The scheme also provides for the retention and refurbishment of an existing former hostel building on the site (a protected structure), which has been incorporated into the overall development. The planning consent provides for an average room size of 17.5sq m (188sq ft). The site is just off John Street, the main route to the centre of Kilkenny city.

Kilkenny is a long-established tourist city and a flagship destination on Ireland’s Ancient East tourist trail with numerous attractions, most notably Kilkenny Castle and the Medieval Mile. The city’s standing as a tourist destination is underpinned by several popular annual festivals including The Cat Laughs Comedy Festival, the Kilkenny Arts Festival and Yulefest. It is convenient to Dublin, Cork and Waterford, with excellent road and rail connectivity. The MacDonagh Junction railway station is just a short distance from the site.

John Ryan of BDM Property says: “Given the dearth of new hotel developments within this bustling city and the pent-up demand for new hotel stock, Kilkenny is a high-barrier-to-entry hotel market. We expect this exciting and long-overdue opportunity for a new hotel to appeal to a variety of hotel operators, hoteliers and developers.”