WHITBREAD PLC has received confirmation from The City of Edinburgh Council that it has granted planning permission for the conversion of Capital House in the city centre into a 195-bedroom Premier Inn.
Whitbread will invest £21 million in the conversion and rear extension of the 65,350 sq ft vacant office building into a latest format Premier Inn hotel with a ground floor restaurant and bar.
Whitbread acquired Edinburgh Capital House freehold in late 2024 and submitted a planning application to change the use of the 1980s office block to a hotel in May 2025.
Jill Anderson, acquisitions manager for Scotland at Whitbread, said, “We are fortunate to have an established network of 14 trading Premier Inn hotels in Edinburgh which welcome a million visitors a year and drive £32 million in annual external spending in the city. The strong year-round demand we are continuing to experience for our rooms in the city is driving the expansion of Premier Inn across Edinburgh, including at Capital House in the heart of the city centre.
“It is a sensational location for a budget hotel given its proximity to iconic tourist destinations like Edinburgh Castle, a host of theatres and concert venues, the Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC) and the Exchange District. Getting the green light to convert the 1980’s office into a latest format Premier Inn is a huge achievement for the team and we will waste no time in breathing fresh life into the empty building and adding another high-quality location for our customers in Scotland.”
In addition to its investment in Capital House, Whitbread is working to expand the presence of Premier Inn at Edinburgh Airport and add a fourth hub by Premier Inn hotel in the city to the east of the city centre.
