Two new Marriott-brand hotels due to open in Cork city in September

The group also has plans for an Adagio-aparthotel on South Terrace.

The arrival of the Marriott brand to the city is hot on the heels of the opening on Morrison’s Quay earlier this year of the city’s first Premier Inn by the Whitbread group, with plans for a second inn at the site of the Leisureplex entertainment complex at the junction of MacCurtain Street/Brian Boru Street. A planning application is due to be lodged in August.

Meanwhile over on South Mall, well-known hotelier Shay Livingstone, who has a long track record in the hospitality industry, including as general manager of the Rochestown Park hotel in the noughties, is set to commence construction of his 58-bedroom boutique hotel at 71 South Mall shortly.

With the three-star Moxy Hotel and Residence Inn due to open mid-September, newly-appointed general manager Roger Russell – formerly of  the Metropole Hotel on nearby MacCurtain Street where he served as general manager for 16 years – said they expect to compete price-wise with the likes of the Clayton and Maldron brands, with rates starting at €179 for room-only.

“Our offering is unique as we are operating two hotels in one building,” said Mr Russell, adding that the Moxy is a “cool, energetic brand” where the staff or “crew” are encouraged to bring their personalities to work and where customers are known as “fun hunters”. The Residence Inn will have a more traditional hotel vibe, with a focus on extended lets, where suites are designed to be a “home-away-from-home”, Mr Russell said, with 55” TVs, fully fitted kitchens, a sofa and queensize/kingsize beds, complimentary breakfast and grocery delivery service.

Both franchise brands will be part of the Marriott Bonvoy, global travel programme allowing regular customers to build up points which can be redeemed to offset cost of stays at different Marriott locations.

Mr Russell said the new hotel development would be “great for this part of the city, adding to the attractiveness of Cork city as a destination with a wide range of accommodation”.

The site was challenging to develop as it’s bounded on all sides by busy city streets as well as neighbouring residential and commercial properties. The main contractors were Limerick-based Conack Construction Ltd, who were also behind Dublin’s Moxy Hotel in Sackville House, just off O’Connell Street.

Conack’s project team was tasked with the delivery of full design and build services for the seven-storey development which involved restoring the iconic façade of the Camden Quay property. The premises, best known as the former location of Atkins/McKenzie's garden world, operated also as a temporary circuit court and later a community arts centre, when it was known, perhaps presciently, as Camden Palace Hotel.

 It’s been through a series of ownerships too: a company called Oyster Developments bought the site in 2005 for €12.2m; in 2014 it was sold for €750,000 to Stone Work Properties who had plans for an office development and in 2020, it was bought for €3.5m by the JMK group, of which Irish-Pakistani businessman John Kajani is chair. Another of Mr Kajani’s companies, Carra Shore, is behind plans for the aparthotel on South Terrace.

In developing the Camden Quay site, specialist companies were brought in by Conack to restore all of the decorative elements of the 19th century Venetian-style building, the development’s focal point. While the structural repair, reroofing and repair of existing timber sash windows and doors was done by Conack and their domestic subcontractors, conservation architects John Cronin & Associates along with Meitheal Architects supervised works to ensure the character of the original buildings was maintained.

Main design consultants on the project included Meitheal Architects, MMOS Civil & Structural Engineers and Woods PS M&E Services Engineers.

Construction took 22 months, and the developers say it will be delivered “on time and within budget”.

Sonia Kajani of the JMK group said they were “thrilled” to bring the two Marriott brands to Cork city.

“Our goal is to offer a unique blend of stylish comfort and playful experiences that resonate with both short-term and extended-stay guests. Cork’s dynamic spirit aligns perfectly with our vision, and we look forward to welcoming travellers from around the world,” she said.

The group also owns hotels in Dublin, Waterford and London.

The new Cork city offering is within 100m of St Patrick’s Street, and directly across the river from Cork Opera House and the Crawford Art Gallery, where a major expansion is due to get underway shortly. The location is also close to bustling MacCurtain Street, where the city’s first micro-sleeper, Rezz, opened in 2021.

A report by property specialists CBRE earlier this year referred to Cork as a “major tourist destination for both domestic and international travel”, with a total of 2.8m international passengers flying in and out of Cork Airport in 2023, an increase of 25% from 2022 and the busiest year on record for Cork.

With more than 90 hotels and more than 5,500 bedrooms, the report said the hotel market in Cork was “particularly vibrant”. Hotel room occupancy in Cork in 2023 averaged over 80%, while the average room rate averaged approximately €152. The report noted also that the “most noteworthy hotel transaction in 2023 was the sale of the Imperial Hotel and Spa in the city centre, a 4-star hotel with 125 bedrooms that sold for €25.2 million to the Louis Fitzgerald Group”