The hotel market of Lviv is waiting for EURO-2012

There are three years left before EURO-2012, and today or tomorrow the president of UEFA Michael Platini is visiting Ukraine. It is expected that choice of four cities, where the matches will take place, among present four applicants will happen during this visit of Platini. At the moment the main cities for EURO-2012 in Ukraine are Kyiv, Lviv, Dnipropetrovsk and Donetsk, Odessa and Kharkov are in reserve. In the article the specialists of Socmart Company have decided to understand at what stage of development the hotel infrastructure of Lviv, one of the main cities-applicants for holding of football matches, is. According to the statistical information of state administration of Lvivshchyna, in 2008 in Lviv region 148 hotel establishments with capacity of 11 thousand of places functioned. Last year in Lviv region 75 hotels, 11 motels, 22 tourist camps and 40 other establishments for temporary living functioned. Most of hotels are situated in Lviv (36) and in neighbouring Poustomytivsky district (15). Significant quantity of hotel industry enterprises are situated in mountainous Skolivsky district (27). Twenty percent of region hotel establishments (31) are those with categories, 15 among them are in Lviv. In the region six four-star, 19 three-star and six two-star hotels are functioning. There are not any five-star hotels in Lviv region (including Lviv) at the moment.

At present there are 36 hotels with 2115 rooms in Lviv. According to the information of Lviv city administration press office in intentions the quantity of 4-5-star rooms has been reduced nearly twice: according to the previous requirements of UEFA Lviv had to provide 2350 rooms in 5-star hotels (1020 now) and 2050 rooms in 4-star hotels (1315) by 2012. According to the preparation plan in Lviv and its district it is necessary to build 27 new hotels with 3345 rooms. According to the data of Socmart Company 4-5-star hotels are planned to be built in Fredro Street, in Fedorova Street, at the corner of Krakivska and Virmenska Streets, in Teatralna, Chervonoyi Kalyny, Nalyvayka, Hrabovskoho Streets, etc. Besides, already existing hotels «Dnister», «Leopolis», «Оpera» and «Grand-hotel» intend to raise their rating. Generally during their previous visits UEFA experts positively estimated the preparation of Lviv hotels to EURO-2012. It should be noted that since the requirements to Lviv hotels have been reduced then, if all declared project are realized in time, then together with all existing hotels Lviv will outstrip the target on hotels nearly twice. However it seems unlikely since according to the message of Lviv administration the construction of only 11 hotels has been commenced in Lviv. 7 constructable surfaces have been allotted additionally and 9 more are being allotted. Socmart Company are forming the database of the commercial and residential projects of Lviv which are under consruction and in design stage, in the course of which the monitoring of hotel constructions will be carried.

Lviv is a city with significant tourist potential. After the holding of EURO-2012 it rather will not have problems with the occupancy of hotels what can happen in other receiving cities (for example in Donetsk). During the last two years the quantity of tourists in Lviv has increased 40%. In Lviv region during 2008 369,9 thousand people made use of services of hotel industry enterprises, it is 22% more than last year. The quantity of foreign citizens in hotels increased 27,2% and amounted 83,6 thousand people during the period. The tourist geography is expanding too. In 2008 citizens of 113 countries made use of services of region hotel establishments (compared to 100 countries in 2007). Most of visitors were from Poland, Russia, Germany, Byelorussia, USA and Great Britain.

Hotel operators from other countries nave turned careful attention to Lviv too. Last week it became known that big international hotel operators «Hyatt» and «Hilton» are interested in Lviv. Net Hilton, which is ready to give its brand to appropriate hotel (instead of being an investor), is already negotiating with a constructor which has a permission for a hotel construction in the central part of Lviv. This is a hotel of  “family” category, with 3 or 4 stars. Hyatt operator is also studying Lviv, namely a declared hotel complex. Several months ago it was made public that negotiations about operating of the designed hotel in Fedorova Street by Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Net (Sheraton brand) are being held. Besides Hyatt Hotel Corporation, SH and RW, Hilton Hotel Corporation, other international hotel nets have turned their attention to the hotel segment of Lviv such as Accor Group, Marriot International, Rezidor Sas. Not long ago the only hotel with an international operator in West Ukraine was Rixos-Prykarpattia. At the beginning of the year international net Marriott International bought three-star hotel "Druzhba", which they are going to reconstruct.

Historical appearance of the city influences the exterior of hotels – a lot of existing and declared hotels are situated in the buildings which are monuments of architecture or new projects are developed in the pseudo-historical manner. So, according to Socmart information, typical recommendations and remarks as for hotel projects in Lviv town planning council are “to lower number of floors”, “to carry archeological research of a site”, “to bring in public discussion” and so on.

The description of some functioning and declared hotels of Lviv.

A year and a half ago four-star hotel “Leopolis” was opened in Lviv. It is situated in a historical building. The restoration of the monument of architecture had been commenced in 2005 by ZAO “Yevropeysky dim” according to the project of Ukrainian regional scientific restoration institute “Ukrzakhidproyektrestavratsiya”. The boutique hotel is situated in 16 Teatralna Street in the central part of Lviv. At the moment there are 40 common rooms and 3 suite rooms in the hotel. For the April 2009 the cost of staying in “Leopolis” was from 170 Euro to 440 Euro. In plans of the hotel development there is opening of the second stage in 2010, which will claim for “5 stars”, with 78 rooms, 2 restaurants, a spa-center, a beauty saloon, 2 conference halls.

In spring 2009 one smaller four star hotel has to be opened in Lviv. It is situated in the east wing of historic-cultural landscape complex Citadel (it was built in times of Austro-Hungarian Empire in XIX century) in 11 Hrabovskoho Street. The name of the hotel is appropriate - «Citadel inn». The reconstruction lasted for 3 years. There are 24 standard rooms and 2 suite rooms in the hotel. There is a restaurant for 120 seats, a lobby bar, a casino, a spa-zone in the new hotel.

The hotel in Fedorova Street. The project of the hotel was developed by English architectural work-shop John SEIFERT ARCITECTS. The planned total area of the hotel, according to Socmart data, is 12700 sq. M. The five-star, seven-floor hotel with 150 rooms (8700 sq. m) will include two parts – a VIP wing with a separate hotel building with a bar, a swimming pool, a restaurant, a special relax zone, recreational and fitness clubs, rooms for negotiations, etc. The area of the rooms will vary from 32 to 48 sq. m. Now the negotiations as for the operation of the hotel are being held with Sheraton Hotels and Resorts. The project was put in the session of the town planning Council of the town planning department in November last year, but it did not receive a full approval.

The hotel in the corner of Krakivska and Virmenska. In conditions of the regeneration of the historical quarter, upon the project of an Austrian architect, they plan to build a hotel by 2012 with facade parts with a form of a wave. According to the idea of the projectors there will be five floors in the hotel and all rooms will differ from each other. Most of rooms in the hotel will be twin rooms but several suite rooms there will be too. Its internal infrastructure will include a restaurant, a bar, a conference hall and a separate two-level “sky bar” facing Virmenska Church. On the territory where now a mini-park is situated architect Hubert Herman offers to organize a garden for residents and guests of Lviv. The foundation discovered at the place of the future construction they plan to exhibit in the basement floors of the hotel. The project of the “waved” hotel in the central part of Lviv is so far only a sketch, it is going to be refined. The approximate cost of the hotel construction is about 6750 million Euros. The investor of the hotel construction is firm “Budinvest” (which now owns ¾ of the territory where the hotel is going to be erected). From the Ukrainian side “Architectonic” Company is a projector. The project, which passed the town planning Council in the end of 2009, caused a controversial reaction of the members of the town-planning Council.

One more autumn project, which can be referred to scandalous ones, is a hotel at the place of “Vernisazh” market. The reason: the designated purpose of the site was provided for the erection of a five-star hotel. The market itself they offer to transfer to another place. It is a five-level hotel complex with a mansard, the total height is 18 meters. At the first floor there will be a restaurant plus probably a museum of the city castle which was situated there some time ago. Besides, the projectors offer to do the floor of the first storey transparent, and under it visitors could see the ruins of the city castle. At the second floor of the hotel complex there will be a patio around which there will be hotel rooms at the 2-5 floors. Generally the hotel will be able to place 84 people (the quantity of the places can be increased to 174). At the mansard floor the architects offer to place a green terrace, which has to compensate the city the cutting of plants. There has been planned an underground car park there too. But the members of the town planning council have not support the offer.

The author: socMart

The visualisations: at the top  - the project of reconstruction of Dnister hotel, in the center – the project of Lviv Country Club hotel in an existing historical castle, at the bottom – the project of the hotel at the corner of Krakivska and Virmenska Streets.

Want to know more about future hotels of Lviv and other declared projects?

Want to know more about hotels under construction and designed hotels of Kyiv?

Want to know more about residential buildings under construction and designed residential buildings of Kyiv?

Want to know more about declared trading centers of Kyiv?

Want to know more about business centers under construction and designed business centers of Kyiv?