The auction for Jurys Inn – the hotel chain owned by Jurys Doyle – has entered its final round today, with Claridges owner Derek Quinlan emerging as the favourite with his offer of 1.2bn euro (£812m).

The remaining bidders are understood to be Whitbread, Lydian Capital and JP McManus.

Jurys Inn has 20 three and four-star hotels in the UK and Ireland with another 10 planned, and any outstanding proceeds from the sale will likely be put back towards its remaining 12 Jurys Doyle-branded hotels.

As previously reported in Leisure Opportunities, memorandums were sent out in March this year to around 50 private equity houses and trade buyers and it was reported at the time that Jurys Doyle aimed “to sell within the next three months”.