Windowless hotel bedrooms won’t see the light of day

Dublin might be facing a shortage of hotels to cater for its millions of overseas visitors… but the city authorities have drawn the line on allowing windowless bedrooms to solve the problem.

Dublin City Council has refused an application by one city centre hotel which sought planning permission to convert its basement into hotel bedrooms without any natural daylight.

The owners of the Grafton Capital Hotel on Stephen’s Street Lower, near the back of the St Stephen’s Green shopping centre, wanted to amend an approved redevelopment to replace a gym, meetings rooms, and plant on its basement level with 12 bedrooms.