Fattal Hotels: The Leonardo Empire
How one Israeli hotelier built the largest hotel group in Israel — and one of the largest privately controlled hotel platforms in Europe — from a single property in Eilat.
Part of: Who Owns the Israeli Hotel Sector
How one Israeli hotelier built the largest hotel group in Israel — and one of the largest privately controlled hotel platforms in Europe — from a single property in Eilat.
What began as a single hotel in Eilat became the largest Israeli hotel company — and eventually one of Europe’s largest hospitality platforms.
Fattal Hotels operates roughly 250 hotels across Israel, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, Belgium, and Austria. More than 50,000 rooms. Roughly $2 billion in annual revenue. Brands across the segment curve: Leonardo, Leonardo Royal, Leonardo Boutique, NYX Lifestyle Hotels, U Hotels, and a portfolio of independents including The Setai Tel Aviv.
At the center: David Fattal, an Israeli operator who is one of the country’s quietest billionaires and, by hotel-room count, its biggest hospitality exporter.
BY THE NUMBERS
Founded: 1998, by David Fattal
Listed: Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (FTAL)
Properties: ~250 hotels across 20+ markets
Rooms: ~50,000+
Revenue: ~$2 billion annual (2024–25 run rate)
Core brands: Leonardo · Leonardo Royal · Leonardo Boutique · NYX Hotels · U Hotels · independents (incl. The Setai Tel Aviv)
Largest country markets: Germany · UK · Israel · Netherlands · Spain · Italy
From One Hotel in Eilat to an Acquisition Engine
David Fattal didn’t just build a hotel company. He built an acquisition engine.
The first property opened in Eilat in 1998. The Israeli portfolio grew quickly through the early 2000s. The strategic move came in 2006, when Fattal acquired Leonardo Hotels — a then-smaller German hotel platform — and began consolidating mid-market European hotels at scale.
Most Israeli hotel operators built domestically and stayed domestic. Fattal built domestically and exported. The thesis was structural: fragmented European mid-market hospitality, limited consolidation, opportunity to build a brand portfolio through acquisition.
The Leonardo Acquisition Engine
Through the 2010s and into the 2020s, Fattal acquired Queens Hotels properties in Germany, the Apollo Hotels Netherlands portfolio, pieces of the Maritim portfolio, hotels across Spain, Italy, and Central Europe, the NYX Lifestyle brand, and — most consequentially — the Jurys Inn portfolio in the UK and Ireland in 2022. The Jurys Inn deal brought the group to scale in the British and Irish markets and reset the platform’s European footprint.
By 2024, Fattal had crossed into rare territory: one of the largest privately controlled hotel platforms in Europe. Leonardo as the workhorse mid-market 3-4* brand. Leonardo Royal as the upscale 4-5* brand. Leonardo Boutique as the design layer. NYX as the lifestyle brand. U Hotels as the Israeli leisure brand.
The platform is vertically integrated. Fattal operates almost entirely under its own brands. There is minimal franchise exposure to the global flag groups. The brand, the operations, the loyalty program, the booking infrastructure — all owned and operated in-house.
The Israeli Core
Domestically, Fattal is the largest hotel operator in Israel by room count. The Israeli portfolio runs across Eilat, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, the Galilee, the Dead Sea, and the North.
At the top of the Israeli portfolio sits The Setai Tel Aviv — the restored Ottoman Kishle complex in Jaffa, opened in 2021 under a long-term arrangement with the Setai brand owner. Below that, Leonardo Plaza, Leonardo Royal, and U Hotels properties cover the broader Israeli market.
The Public Listing
Fattal Hotels is listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange under the ticker FTAL. The position has been one of the better-performing TASE positions across multiple cycles, including the post-October 7 disruption — the European portfolio insulated the company from the Israeli inbound collapse, which is a structural advantage no other major Israeli hotel operator carries to anything like the same degree.
David Fattal remains the controlling shareholder. The free float is meaningful but minority. Institutional Israeli holders are present.
The company has been one of the quietest billion-dollar exits in Israeli business history — built without venture capital, without celebrity-founder press cycles, and largely outside the Tel Aviv tech and finance media orbit.
WHY IT MATTERS
- Largest Israeli-controlled employer in European hospitality — tens of thousands of staff across the platform
- Proved Israeli hospitality operating capability is exportable at scale
- European portfolio served as the strategic hedge through the post-October 7 Israeli inbound collapse
- Operates almost entirely under owned brands — minimal franchise exposure to global flag groups
- Succession is the open question — David Fattal is in his late sixties and family transition has not been telegraphed
What Comes Next
Fattal is still acquiring. The Jurys Inn deal was a step-function move. The integration is largely complete. The next likely moves are continued consolidation in the European mid-market — France, the Nordics, Southern Europe — and continued additions in Israel as the recovery progresses.
The succession question is the open variable. David Fattal is in his late sixties. The family transition has not been telegraphed publicly. Whoever leads Fattal Hotels in the next decade will inherit one of the most strategically valuable Israeli companies that the broader market under-appreciates.
Israel’s biggest hospitality export was never built to be sold. It was built to be operated. That is its defining feature — and probably its enduring one.
Fattal Hotels — FAQ
What is Fattal Hotels?
Fattal Hotels is an Israeli-controlled hospitality company that operates roughly 250 hotels and more than 50,000 rooms across Israel, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, Belgium, and Austria. It is the largest hotel operator in Israel by room count and one of the largest privately controlled hotel platforms in Europe.
Who is David Fattal?
David Fattal is the Israeli founder, chairman, and controlling shareholder of Fattal Hotels. He opened his first hotel in Eilat in 1998 and built one of the largest hospitality platforms in Europe through acquisition. He is one of Israel’s quietest billionaires and, by hotel-room count, the country’s biggest hospitality exporter.
When was Fattal Hotels founded?
Fattal Hotels was founded in 1998 by David Fattal, with a single property in Eilat. The European expansion began in 2006 with the acquisition of the Leonardo Hotels platform in Germany.
How many hotels does Fattal operate?
Fattal operates approximately 250 hotels and more than 50,000 rooms as of 2026, across 20+ markets. Annual revenue is roughly $2 billion at the 2024–25 run rate.
Is Fattal Hotels publicly listed?
Yes. Fattal Hotels is listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange under the ticker FTAL. David Fattal remains the controlling shareholder. The free float is meaningful but minority, with institutional Israeli holders present.
What brands does Fattal Hotels operate?
Fattal’s core brand portfolio includes Leonardo (workhorse mid-market 3–4*), Leonardo Royal (upscale 4–5*), Leonardo Boutique (design), NYX Lifestyle Hotels (lifestyle), and U Hotels (Israeli leisure). The company also operates a portfolio of independents, including The Setai Tel Aviv in Jaffa.
What was the Jurys Inn acquisition?
In 2022, Fattal acquired the Jurys Inn portfolio in the UK and Ireland. The deal brought the group to scale in the British and Irish markets and reset the platform’s European footprint. It was the most consequential transaction in Fattal’s acquisition history.
How did Fattal Hotels perform after October 7, 2023?
Fattal’s European portfolio insulated the company from the Israeli inbound collapse that followed October 7. The TASE-listed FTAL position remained one of the better-performing Israeli hotel positions through the cycle — a structural advantage no other major Israeli hotel operator carries to anything like the same degree.
What is The Setai Tel Aviv?
The Setai Tel Aviv is a Fattal-operated luxury hotel in the restored Ottoman Kishle complex in Jaffa, opened in 2021 under a long-term arrangement with the Setai brand owner. It sits at the top of Fattal’s Israeli portfolio.
Who will succeed David Fattal?
The succession question is the open variable for Fattal Hotels. David Fattal is in his late sixties and the family transition has not been telegraphed publicly as of 2026. Whoever leads Fattal Hotels in the next decade will inherit one of the most strategically valuable Israeli companies that the broader market under-appreciates.
What is the largest Israeli hotel operator in Europe?
Fattal Hotels, operating under the Leonardo brand portfolio, is by a wide margin the largest Israeli-controlled hotel operator in Europe. No other Israeli hospitality company comes close in European room count or geographic footprint.
Part of the Olam Travel & Hospitality cluster — a coordinated set of pieces mapping the Israeli hospitality economy: operators, ownership, supply, demand, and the post-October 7 recovery. Anchors: The Israeli Boutique Hotel Class · Tourism Inside Israel: The Recovery Math · Israeli Hospitality Citation Share Index 2026 — Which Hotels Own the AI Answer. Capstone: Who Owns the Israeli Hotel Sector. Other operator profiles in the cluster: Isrotel · Alrov · Brown · Six Senses Shaharut.
