Hyatt is about to lose its flagship hotel, Grand Hyatt Barcelona, on April 1, 2027, when the property becomes affiliated with RIU and is reflagged as a RIU Plaza hotel.
Grand Hyatt Barcelona became a Grand Hyatt in April 2024, and has been affiliated with Hyatt since 2018 under the Unbound Collection brand as Hotel Sofia.
You can access Hyatt’s page for Grand Hyatt Barcelona here.
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The hotel is still available for booking on Hyatt’s website after the handover date of April 1, 2027.
Paid reservations are always honored when the flag changes, unless the hotel closes for renovations.
Award reservations rarely are, and I doubt that it would be the case here either.
Hyatt doesn’t have good options to relocate guests in Barcelona, as the Hyatt Regency Barcelona Tower is essentially outside of the city and closer to the airport.
RIU’s Announcement:
RIU achieves a historic milestone with the purchase of its first hotel in Barcelona
This operation, led by RIU, Blasson Property Investments and BNP Paribas Asset Management Alts, is one of the most important of the year in Spain
RIU Hotels & Resorts has just confirmed the purchase of the historic Hotel Princesa Sofia in Barcelona from its previous owners, Blasson Property Investments and BNP Paribas Asset Management Alts. The asset has a strategic location on Avenida Joan XXIII, just one block from Avenida Diagonal, right next to the Camp Nou, the iconic CaixaBank headquarters and opposite the Jardines de las Infantas and various University of Barcelona campuses, in the most elegant part of the Les Corts – Pedralbes district.
The hotel, which has 465 rooms spread over 19 floors and one of the largest event and meeting centres in the city, will be managed by RIU from 1st April 2027, becoming the 14th hotel in its Riu Plaza urban line, with which it is already present in world capitals such as London, New York or Chicago.
“With this hotel we are fulfilling a historic goal as we have been looking for the right opportunity to invest in the city of Barcelona for more than a decade, which has been a strategic priority for us since we launched our Riu Plaza line in 2010. We are facing this project with the same enthusiasm and professional dedication that we invested in the Hotel Riu Plaza de Madrid, which is our best-known asset today”, states Luis Riu, CEO of RIU.
The real estate transaction was brokered by aCapital for the buyer and by Eastdil and Colliers for the seller.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Which hotel has RIU Hotels & Resorts acquired in Barcelona? RIU has acquired the historic Hotel Princesa Sofia, located in the Les Corts – Pedralbes district. When will RIU begin operating the Hotel Princesa Sofia? The chain will assume direct management of the establishment from 1st April 2027. Under which brand will the new Barcelona hotel be integrated? It will be integrated as the 14th hotel in the Riu Plaza urban line. Who were the owners of the asset before the purchase by RIU? The previous owners were the entities Blasson Property Investments and BNP Paribas Asset Management Alts. What capacity and main facilities does the property have? It has 465 rooms spread over 19 floors and one of the largest meeting and event centres in the city. Which firms advised on the sale transaction? The firm aCapital acted as intermediary for the buyer, while Eastdil and Colliers advised the seller.
Conclusion
This is a huge blow to Hyatt, as they are essentially left only with an airport property in one of the most popular cities in Europe.
Hyatt should close award bookings past April 1st next year so this flag change doesn’t affect more guests, as it already does.
Usually, these flag changes are announced on very short notice, but here we have five months.