hotels-leisure

Hotels & Leisure

The firm has been involved in the sector since its inception and has continuously developed the practice. It advises some of the country’s largest and most prestigious hotel chains and several domestic and international investors, private equity funds, travel companies and operators on the full range of legal services including acquisitions, disposals, developments and construction, equity capital, bond issues, litigation and M&As. Given the sector’s focus on real estate, transactions involve advanced financing solutions which also make use of the firm’s deal structuring, finance and tax expertise. The firm’s work includes, among others, the following:

  • Hotels management contracts;
  • Operating leases of hotels;
  • Acquisitions and disposals;
  • Development and construction;
  • Franchising schemes;
  • Joint ventures;
  • Incentives and grants;
  • Domestic regulatory and employment matters peculiar to the sector;
  • Sector-specific litigation; and
  • Tax compliance, especially on VAT.

Recent highlights include:

  • Acquisition of travel company Youtravel.com by FTI Tourstik GmbH.
  • Acting for Aquis Hotels & Resort in multi-jurisdiction demerger involving Greece, UK and Cyprus.
  • Advice to Expedia on Greek safety regulations regarding the construction and operation of hotels in Greece.
  • Advice to Warwick Capital Partners on contemplated acquisitions in the Greek hotel sector.
  • Establishment and corporate restructuring of Meeting Point Hellas, a subsidiary of Meeting Point International.
  • A joint venture between two large hotel chains in the Greek islands.

Representative Clients

FTI Touristik, Meeting Point, Expedia, Thomas Cook, Youtravel.com, Aquis Hotels & Resorts, Warwick Capital Partners, Barclays Ventures, Blue Lagoon Annex, Kipriotis Hotels, Yourholidays.com.

IFLR 1000 2014 says:

Kelemenis & Co. is best known for its work on corporate matters specifically in the energy and leisure industries… In the M&A area transactional highlights included acting for Youtravel.com on its sale to FTI Touristik and a number of other confidential mandates in the tourism sector.

Legal 500 2013 says:

Kelemenis & Co. advised Youtravel.com on its financing by Santander. It also has experience in refinancings and derivatives. Ioanna Lazaridou and Tom Kyriakopoulos are the names to note.

Chambers Europe 2013 says:

This firm is well reputed for its dispute resolution work, particularly in the energy and leisure sectors.

Chambers Europe 2012 says:

This growing firm has created a strong name for itself advising on commercial disputes in the energy, leisure, insurance and pharmaceuticals sectors.

Chambers Europe 2010 says:

A further area of focus for the firm is the hotels, leisure and travel sector, where it has advised on several hotel and resort acquisitions.

Legal 500 2010 says:

Kelemenis & Co. has a prominent profile in the leisure and hotel industry, advising on corporate finance issues. The team, led by the “commercially aware” Yannis Kelemenis, acted for Aquis Hotels & Resorts on the €100m financing of eight hotels and resorts.

Legal 500 2009 says:

Kelemenis & Co. has an international focus to its corporate practice. The firm has recently acted for Barclays, as majority shareholders in Greek subsidiary Youtravel.com, on an acquisition bid for the company by Western & Oriental.

Practice Areas