Wyndham Hotels & Resorts has acquired the Vienna House brand from Berlin-based hotel operator HR Group for €44 million, the company announced on Thursday (8 September).
The acquisition will expand the group’s European footprint, adding approximately 40 hotels – 28 in Germany alone – and more than 6,000 rooms to its upscale and midscale portfolio in destinations such as Berlin, Munich, Prague, Krakow and Bucharest.
Under the terms of the agreement, HR Group, a long-standing franchise partner of Wyndham, will continue to own or lease and operate existing Vienna House hotels under long-term franchise agreements with Wyndham. Upon closing, the Vienna House brand will be known as Vienna House by Wyndham, and will leverage the group’s marketing scale.
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts president and CEO Geoff Ballotti said the acquisition will reinforce the group’s ambitions for growth in the region, where its current portfolio includes more than 400 hotels in more than 30 countries.
“Europe continues to present accelerating growth for the travel sector with strong demand steadily bouncing back across leisure and business,” he said.
HR Group CEO Ruslan Husry said the company’s “expanded and close-knit collaboration” with Wyndham will provide the “strength, scale and expertise needed” to grow the 30-year-old Vienna House brand at a faster rate, while also allowing guests to tap into Wyndham’s loyalty rewards programme.
"We found an excellent like-minded partner in Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, sharing the same passion to bring high-quality accommodations where travellers want to be,” he added.