Michael Holland company buys Fitzwilliam Hotel in Belfast

A company owned by Michael Holland, controller of the Ampleforth Group hospitality business, has bought the 130-bedroom Fitzwilliam Hotel in Belfast city centre in a deal valued at around €23 million.

Mr Holland’s management company, Hotel Partners, had been running the hotel on Great Victoria Street in the city since it opened in mid-2009.

It emerged on Monday that a sister company of Ampleforth bought the property from its previous owner, investment vehicle Graffan.

The sale price was not revealed, but industry sources in the city suggested that the property sold for £17 million sterling (€23 million).

The Fitzwilliam was developed at a cost of €27 million and began trading in 2009, since when it has become one of Belfast’s most popular hotels. Ampleforth has reported that its earnings grew 16 per cent last year to €3.9 million on a turnover of €32 million.