Robert De Niro to open new luxury hotel in central London

Robert De Niro has been enjoying a later-in-life second career in the hospitality industry opening hotels and restaurants around the world. (AP)

Robert De Niro is expanding his luxury travel empire with the addition of a new hotel in London’s Covent Garden area.

On Saturday, the award-winning actor announced plans for an 83-room property which will merge six historic buildings into one large unit featuring a luxury spa, two restaurants and a central courtyard, reports Sky News.

De Niro plans to call the new property The Wellington Hotel, if his team is granted permission to build by the Westminster Council.

"London is one of the most exciting and cosmopolitan cities in the world,” said De Niro ahead of the announcement.

"It makes perfect sense to develop a hotel that represents all of that in the heart of this city in Covent Garden."

Constructing the hotel will involve knocking through six adjacent buildings, but the hotel will retain the original façade of the historic properties. If plans are approved, work is scheduled to begin in 2017, with an opening date in 2019.

The Wellington Hotel is a joint venture between De Niro and two developers-- the U.K.-based property firm Capco and America's BD Hotels. The actor co-owns the Greenwich Hotel in New York City with BD Hotels.

Last year, De Niro, who has been enjoying a later-in-life second career in the hospitality business, opened Nobu Hotel Manila in the Philippines.