As the Republic relaxes visa restrictions for Ukrainians and starts accepting arrivals from the conflict zone, the Government has said it will look initially to house some of them in hotels. This will further strain capacity in the existing network of properties that the State hires from private owners to house refugees.
Ultimately, it is likely lead to more deals such as the one for the Holiday Inn at Dublin Airport, a brand new €56 million hotel that opened seven months ago. It closed to the public in recent weeks and signed an exclusive contract with the State to house people seeking asylum here.
Based upon the type of deals offered to other hotels recently, the State is likely paying up to €15 million per year for the use of the Holiday Inn.
New figures supplied to The Irish Times by the International Protection Accommodation Service (Ipas) of the Department of Children imply the State has also moved beyond renting and has actually bought three hotels to house asylum seekers. This may be a more cost-effective long-term approach, instead of renting hotels for an estimated €100 per room per night, often on guaranteed 100 per cent occupancy.
‘State-owned’ hotels
The new figures show the State is now using 40 hotels to provide accommodation to people seeking refuge in Ireland, in addition to reception centres such as Balsekin in north Dublin. Ipas said the hotels have added 5,499 rooms to the State’s refugee accommodation capacity.
Excluding three “State-owned” hotels, Ipas says, it spent €81.38 million in 2021 renting rooms at the other privately owned hotels.
An estimated €500 million has been set aside to hire even more private accommodation over the next 34 months, when the State is due to end its direct provision system for asylum seekers. Much of that cash will flow to hotels in the private sector. Even as the travel industry recovers in coming months and years, lots more hoteliers look set to benefit from Ipas’s burgeoning outlay.
