Read the latest news from around Europe.

Commenting on first-quarter 2021 earnings, Accor executives said global revenue per available room fell by 64.3%, compared to 2019 figures. Revenue for the same period fell 57% to 361 million euros ($434 million), but that the firm is well placed to take advantage of the upcoming resurgence in travel, according to HNN’s Terence Baker.

CEO Sébastien Bazin said the numbers came as no surprise but that he saw real hope. “Global business trends are improving slightly, and the ramp-up of the vaccine rollouts bodes well for a particularly strong rebound. As it did in 2020, the group continues to keep a close eye on protecting its cash and cutting costs.”

United Kingdom hoteliers are looking forward to May 17 when their hotels in England and Wales are scheduled to fully reopen. Hoteliers in Northern Ireland will have to wait seven days more, but hotels in Scotland already opened on April 26, with Thomas Emanuel, director, STR, stating that currently occupancy continues the same pattern it has since the beginning of the year, with weekday peaks of roughly 40% and weekend troughs of approximately 20%.

In his monthly roundup of U.K. hotel performance, Emanuel said already there are signs of rebirth, with “[London’s] business on the books [remaining] a little weaker, at present peaking in at the 20% mark. When comparing this to regional U.K., we can clearly see the premium when looking toward the warmer months. Business on the books is already at 35% for the last week of June.”

Executives at Whitbread PLC, parent company of the Premier Inn brand, said that the U.K. — it's main market — has more than 92% of its hotels open as the hotel industry gears up to welcoming all guests on May 17. The company has additional hope from the resumption of limited attendance at sports and cultural events as of April 24, according to HNN’s Baker.

Whitbread reported a year-over-year decline in revenue of 71.4% to 589.4 million pounds sterling, or $819 million, accounting for losses not just in accommodations but also from its on-site restaurant brands. Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization fell 125.9%. CEO Alison Brittain said that Whitbread’s guidance is that every 1% change in total sales has a 16.5 million pounds sterling impact on profit before tax, but that this has improved from 18 million pounds sterling due to “increased flexibility in the cost base.”

Europe is the only world region in the first quarter of 2021 with increased hotel construction activity in comparison with the same period in 2020, according to March pipeline data from STR, CoStar’s hospitality analytics firm.

In year-on-year percentage terms for the period, hotels in construction increased 26.9%, which equates to an additional 258,129 rooms, while those in final planning increased 23.7% (181,101 rooms). Hotels in planning, though, decreased 8.8%, equating to 155,615 rooms. Germany and the U.K. lead Europe, with 51,785 and 36,919 total rooms in construction, respectively.

Accor has announced Stephen Alden as the CEO of its Raffles and Orient Express brands. He began his role on May 3. Previously, Alden founded hotel collection Dedica Anthology and was CEO for nine years of Maybourne Hotel Group, which includes London hotels Claridge’s and The Connaught.

Thai hotel investors and operators are continuing to acquire assets in Europe, in part to open new markets for existing Thai brands. Since Minor International's 2.3 billion euro ($2.74 billion) purchase of Spanish hotel firm NH Hotels in October 2018, Thai investors and hotel firms such as S Hotels & Resorts, DTGO and Narai Group have spent capital, with the search set to continue, according to HNN’s Baker.

In recent months, S Hotels & Resorts has bought the remaining 50% of 26 Mercure hotels with a total of 2,886 rooms in the U.K., from its joint venture partner, FICO Holdings United Kingdom, for 560 million Thai baht ($17.8 million); DTGO bought a 17-asset, 3,383-room portfolio, also in the U.K., managed by Valor Hospitality from U.S. private-equity fund Marathon Asset Management, and Narai Group invested into a European-based fund to add to its existing portfolio.

• Foundation Asset Management AB has acquired the ownership of Grand Group, which owns the 273-room Grand Hotel Stockholm, as well as the Sparrow and Lydmar hotels. The price of 3.9 billion Swedish krona ($466.7 million) mostly covered the 3.6 billion Swedish krona ($431 million) acquisition of the Grand Hotel Stockholm, which opened in 1874.

• Leonardo Hotels made its Bristol, England, debut with the April opening of the 179-room new-build Leonardo Hotel Bristol Glassfields. It will debut its Nyx brand in London later this month with the 213-room Nyx Hotel London Holborn.

• Deutsche Hospitality has announced the 194-room IntercityHotel Karlsruhe, Germany, in partnership with architect Matteo Thun and owners Qcoon Real Estate GmbH and Fortoon Development GmbH. It will open in the second quarter of 2023.

• Marriott International has debuted its Four Points by Sheraton brand in the U.K. in a partnership with owner Nine Group for the 131-room Four Points by Sheraton London Gatwick Airport. In the Surrey town of Horley, close to the airport, the hotel occupies a 15th-century coaching inn that has been closed since 2013.

• Madrid-based private-equity firm Azora has made the first purchase with its €680 million ($822-million) Azora European Hotel and Lodging fund, acquiring the 213-room Arenas Resort Giverola from Swiss owner Arenas The Resorts. The asset, to be managed by Med Playa, will now undergo a €40 million ($48.35 million) renovation.

• U.K. pension fund Legal & General has bought the 212-room Yotel London Clerkenwell, which opened in August 2020 as Yotel’s first London asset but was placed in administration by its previous owner Medina Investments. The price tag was 70 million pounds sterling ($97.6 million), and Yotel will continue to operate it under a long-term management agreement.