Over the past two years, demand from tourists has surged, and companies in the sector have recovered rapidly, even surpassing their pre-pandemic billing and profitability. This rebound has enabled expansion plans that had been paused when Covid arrived.
The Poseidon Hotels group, led by former Hosbec chairman Pere Joan Devesa, intends to push ahead with its plans for next year, including the extension of Poseidon Beach in Benidorm once the company has fully recovered from the pandemic’s impact on its finances and the restrictions it triggered.
In particular, the parent company Hoteles Devesa SL, which operates six of the chain’s eight hotels, reported last year a turnover of 33.5 million euros according to official balance sheets filed with the Trade Registry. That figure represents a 66.5 percent increase from 2021 and sits 4 percent higher than the pre-pandemic level reached in 2019.
Poseidon Hotels leaves the epidemic behind and posts healthy gains
A similar trend is evident in profits, with the company increasing earnings from 2.5 million to 3.8 million euros, a rise that also tops the profits achieved in the year before Covid hit.
The Poseidon hotel group celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2023, marking half a century of operations in the hospitality sector. The leadership notes satisfaction with last year’s results and optimism for continued growth this year, projecting a double-digit rise in billing. Devesa cautions that inflation has pushed up the cost of many materials, impacting the income statements, even as revenue climbs.
Encouraging figures
The business leader recognizes the progress but remains mindful of the challenges. He recalls the sector’s difficult period in 2020 when restrictions to control the epidemic weighed heavily, describing it as a brutal test for tourism. The chain endured losses during that period but recovered quickly as air travel to Europe resumed and visitors returned.
The positive momentum has prompted Poseidon to continue with its plans for Poseidon Playa in Benidorm. The project contemplates a new building of more than twenty floors rising behind the current structure, effectively doubling capacity from the existing 312 rooms to around 600, forming a two-tower resort complex.
The group has already approved an Internal Reform Plan to enable this new building and is awaiting the latest municipal permits, with an anticipated start of construction in 2024. The hotelier notes that some portions of the project will require at least 24 months to complete.
Poseidon Hotels currently manages eight properties across Benidorm, Guardamar del Segura, Torrevieja, and La Manga del Mar Menor in the Region of Murcia. The last two locations were acquired in 2016. According to Devesa, the portfolio comprises more than 1,800 rooms and about 3,900 beds, while the average workforce in the most recent financial year stood at roughly 355 employees.
From a modest inn to a full-fledged chain, the Poseidon story began in 1956 when the parents of the present president, Pere Joan Devesa, opened a small guesthouse in Benidorm. The family’s first hotel, Poseidon, opened in 1973 on land purchased in 1928 and laid the foundation for the eight-hotel footprint that followed.