Merrion Hotel remains in the red

ONE of the country’s plushest hotels, the five star Merrion in Dublin remained in the red last year although losses eased.

Pretax losses fell from €2.21 million in 2007 to €607,500 in the year to the end of October 2008. In the years leading up to 2007 the hotel had three years of profit growth.

The accounts show the company believes that risks include the “unrealistic increases in infrastructural cost impacting adversely on the competitiveness of the group and its principal customers”.

Turnover dipped from €18.5m to €16.8m while administrative expenses fell from €8.7m to €6.9m.

There were 246 staff employed in the year, down from 250 in 2007. Staff costs fell from €9.2m to €7.5m.

The hotel is controlled by Glen Dimplex founder Martin Naughton, ESB chairman Lochlann Quinn and Northern Ireland hotelier Billy Hastings.

The hotel houses Ireland’s only two Michelin star eatery, Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud.

The Merrion Hotel has faced increased competition in the city in recent years, especially from the newly refurbished Shelbourne hotel on St Stephen’s Green.

Hotels countrywide are struggling with a fall in tourists numbers and a drop in spend from domestic holidaymakers.

Figures released this week show domestically, expenditure on trips in Ireland fell almost 10% – to €256.3m in the first quarter of 2009.