Clarence Hotel

The Clarence Hotel is a four-star 51-room hotel located at 6–8 Wellington Quay, Dublin, Ireland. It is in the Temple Bar neighbourhood, on the River Liffey. It was built in 1852, and bought by U2 lead singer Bono and lead guitarist The Edge and their business partners in 1992, and opened after refurbishment in 1996.

Not to be confused with Royal Clarence Hotel.

The Clarence Hotel
The main façade of the hotel, November 2006
General information
Classification
LocationDublin, Ireland
Address6–8 Wellington Quay,
Dublin 2
D02 HT44
Coordinates53.345263°N 6.266782°W / 53.345263; -6.266782
Opened1852 (1852)
Renovated6 October 1996 (1996-10-06)
Renovation cost8 million US dollars
OwnerBono, The Edge, Paddy McKillen and Derek Quinlan
ManagementPress Up Entertainment
Technical details
Floor count7
Other information
Number of rooms45
Number of suites4
Number of restaurants3 — Cleaver East, The Study and the Octagon Bar
Website
theclarence.ie

The hotel was constructed on land that was originally reclaimed for the building of the Old Custom House around 1704.

History

The Clarence Hotel first opened in 1852 in the original premises consisting of a number of adjoining quayside houses which were replaced by the present building in the 1930s.[1]

In 1992, Bono and U2 lead guitarist The Edge bought and later refurbished the two-star 70-room hotel, and converted it into a "contemporary boutique" 49-room hotel.[2] After an 18-month renovation costing US$8 million,[3] enabled in part, due to a tax-exemption scheme which aimed to revive the Temple Bar district the hotel re-opened in 1996.[4] As of 2019, while the hotel building was owned by Bono, the Edge and developer Paddy McKillen Sr., its leasehold is held by a company called Press Up Entertainment (owned by developers Paddy McKillen jnr and Matt Ryan). This company manages the hotel's operations.[5]

The hotel's main restaurant, Cleaver East, replaced The Tea Rooms in July 2013.

Expansion proposals
The Octagon bar at the Clarence Hotel

In 2004, plans were announced for an expansion of the hotel, which would include adjoining properties 9 Essex Street and 9, 10 and 11 Wellington Quay.[6] All of the historic buildings would be gutted, leaving just the façades. Everything else would be new. The budget was projected at US$237.2 million. There was opposition from historic preservation groups including An Taisce,[7] but support from some city agencies. The proposed project was approved in 2008 by An Bord Pleanála, the Irish planning appeals agency.[8] However, the planning approval for these plans expired in 2013.[9]

The hotel lost money during the early 21st century recession,[10] but returned to profitability as of 2011.[11]

Media

In September 2000, a month before the release of the U2 album All That You Can't Leave Behind, a live version of the song "Beautiful Day" was filmed on the rooftop of The Clarence Hotel for the BBC programme Top of the Pops.[12][13] It is featured on the extra features of the Elevation 2001: Live from Boston DVD (although it is incorrectly labelled on the DVD as "Toronto, Canada").

References
  1. "1852, Clarence Hotel, Dublin". archiseek.com. Archiseek. Retrieved 19 October 2023. quayside houses
  2. "At the Clarence". theclarence.ie. The Clarence Hotel. Retrieved 8 June 2020. In 1992, U2's Bono and The Edge bought The Clarence, turning what had become a tired and worn stopover into a gorgeous and contemporary boutique hotel
  3. "An 1852 Dublin Hotel Reopens, Redone". The New York Times. 6 October 1996. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  4. McDonald, Henry (2 December 2007). "Building plans give U2 hometown blues | World news | The Guardian". The Guardian. London: GMG. ISSN 0261-3077. OCLC 60623878. Retrieved 5 July 2013. revitalised thanks in part to a tax-exemption scheme.
  5. "Bono and The edge sell Clarence Hotel leasehold to McKillen jnr's Press Up Entertainment". The Irish Times. 20 June 2019. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
  6. Lyons, Tom (21 April 2004). "Bono aims to double size of Clarence Hotel". Irish Independent. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  7. Doyle, Dara (25 February 2008). "Bono's Dublin hotel plan pits rocker against preservationists". The New York Times. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  8. "U2 hotel revamp gets green light but only if rooftop is open to all". Belfast Telegraph. 18 July 2008. Archived from the original on 5 July 2013. Retrieved 4 July 2013.
  9. "Press Up seeks to add 54 bedrooms to Clarence". The Irish Times. 1 July 2019. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
  10. "U2's Clarence hotel sees losses rocket". Belfast Telegraph. 27 September 2010. Archived from the original on 5 July 2013. Retrieved 1 July 2013.
  11. Deegan, Gordon (15 October 2011). "Bono and the Edge help Clarence Hotel back to profit". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 4 July 2013.
  12. Cubillo, Carolina (Director) (7 December 2009). Callejeros Viajeros [Street Travellers] (Television production). Ireland: Cuatro.
  13. "Beautiful Day on Roof of Clarence Hotel – RTÉ Archives". rte.ie. 2013. Retrieved 5 July 2013. a filmed insert for the BBC programme 'Top of the Pops'
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