Investor of canceled mini-Dubai development may bring hotel chain launched in Belgrade to Budapest

Several trademark applications have been filed with the Hungarian Intellectual Property Office (SZTNH) for various versions of the Bristol brand name by Eagle Hills, a real estate development company based in the United Arab Emirates, which became known in Hungary in relation to the – since then cancelled – project Hungarians had dubbed mini-Dubai in the area of a former freight terminal, Rákosrendező.

The company would now like to trademark the terms Bristol Danube Palace, Bristol Éclat Retreat, Bristol Lionsgate Hotel, and Bristol Bellevue Hotel. If the SZTNH approves the applications, Eagle Hills will have exclusive rights to using these names for accommodation services in the future.

The name of Eagle Hills became widely known in Hungary when its Hungarian subsidiary signed a huge purchase agreement with the Hungarian National Asset Management Company in January this year.

Under the agreement, the investor would have purchased an 85-hectare site in Rákosrendező for HUF 50.9 billion, where it would have built an entire city district. However, the investment fell through due to resistance from the capital and pre-emption rights.

Eagle Hills nevertheless did not give up on its plans for expansion in Budapest. The next time it was featured in the news was after it purchased the building of the Ministry of the Interior on Széchenyi Square from the state for more than HUF 50 billion.

The current trademark applications are most likely related to the latter real estate purchase. As previously reported, when advertising the building, the Hungarian National Asset Management Company (MNV) specifically described it as being "suitable for special purposes due to its exclusive design and location." At the time we also indicated that it would not be surprising if the property were converted into a hotel.

What's more, the building of the ministry of interior would be a perfect fit for Eagle Hills' Bristol brand. The chain's namesake hotel is a prestigious Belgrade hotel, which reopened this year after having been renovated.

Since the launching of the brand, Bristol Hotels have already opened in Albania, Ethiopia, and the United Arab Emirates, and according to the company's latest announcement, a Bristol Hotel is also being built in Morocco.

What can be expected? The authorities are likely to approve the applications. At the same time, the fact that there is already a hotel called Bristol in Budapest, which is operated by Accent Hotel Management, could add a twist to the story.

But even if Eagle Hills receives the permits, and it actually builds the new hotel in the building currently housing the ministry of interior, the opening is not going to happen for a while. Not only because of the anticipated renovation, but also because the state sold the building on the condition that the ministry of interior wouldn’t have to completely vacate and hand it over until sometime next year.