Succession in a family-owned hotel: the options

A large share of Italian hotels is run by families in their second or third generation. Milano Finanza, in August 2026, put the average age of the sector’s owners at 59 and noted that heirs willing to carry on are often missing. Succession is therefore a decision many owners will face, and it is better taken before the calendar takes it for them.

The options

1. Continue in the family, with clear rules

The natural route when someone genuinely wants to carry on. It works when roles, decision rights and family salaries are written down rather than left to habit. The legal instruments for the handover, such as a family pact (patto di famiglia) or shareholder agreements, are a matter for the notary and advisers.

2. Keep the business, appoint a professional operator

Under a management agreement the family keeps ownership of the business and its result, and a professional operator runs the hotel on its behalf for a fee. The business risk stays with the owners; what changes is who runs the hotel day to day.

3. Lease the business to an operator

Under a business lease (affitto d’azienda) the family receives rent and the operator becomes the entrepreneur, carrying the risk and the result. Fisco7 notes that business leases are also used in generational handovers, when whoever is to carry on cannot yet take on the cost of an acquisition. How this differs from a property lease and a management agreement is set out in a separate guide.

4. Bring in a partner

A minority or majority investor can provide liquidity for family members who want out and capital for investment, while the family stays in management or in the shareholding. It needs clear shareholder agreements on governance, investment and exit.

5. Sell

A sale can cover everything, the property alone or the business alone. One variant is to sell the property and stay on as tenant operator (sale and leaseback): it releases capital without interrupting trading.

A quick comparison

Option	Who runs the hotel	Who takes the result	Who carries the risk	Liquidity for the family
Continue in the family	The family	The family	The family	None immediately
Management agreement	An operator, for the family	The family, after fees	The family	None immediately
Business lease	The tenant operator	The operator; the family receives rent	The operator	Periodic rent
Partner	As agreed	Pro rata	Pro rata	For the stake sold
Sale	The buyer	The buyer	The buyer	Sale price

The comparison is simplified: each contract can shift risks and rights differently, and must be drafted with qualified professionals.

What to prepare, whichever route

• Reconciled accounts: the hotel’s sustainable result, net of family costs and salaries.
• Informal arrangements put in writing: rents between relatives, use of space, verbal commitments to staff.
• A view of the investment required, separating deferred maintenance from value-adding capital expenditure.
• Property documents in order: title, compliance, certifications.
• The role of family members working in the hotel, settled before it becomes a negotiating point.

The questions to ask as a family

Who genuinely wants to carry on, and with what commitment? Does anyone need liquidity, and when? Does the hotel need investment the family can or wants to fund? How much does sentiment weigh against economics? The answers steer the choice more than the numbers do.

MC21’s role

MC21 helps the family compare the routes on the numbers, prepare the hotel before it goes to market and, once a choice is made, find the right operator, partner or buyer. Succession, corporate and tax matters remain with notaries, lawyers and accountants.