Travelodge £135M national park push includes Aviemore hotel

Travelodge has announced a 37 hotel and £135 million national park expansion push including proposals for a hotel in Aviemore.

The UK’s fastest growing hotel chain said this was in response to high customer demand for hotels near to the UK’s top rural locations.

They said with the Staycation break being more popular than ever, the growing trend for Britons to holiday on British shores has been a strong revenue generator for the hotel chain.

A spokeswoman said: "Traditionally coastal locations have been the most popular destinations for Britons holidaying at home but over the last 12 months Travelodge has seen a surge in more Britons taking a rural break.

"The company’s hotels which are within a wide radius of the main national parks have achieved high occupancy levels far earlier than normal this year."

Travelodge said their most popular Travelodge hotels sites this year have included Barnstaple (Exmoor), Porthmadog (Snowdonia), Cockermouth (Lake District) and Scarborough (North Yorkshire Moors).

In response to this growing trend, the Travelodge property team has been instructed to heavily focus their efforts on finding 37 suitable sites near to the UK’s 15 National Parks.

New locations include: Aviemore (Cairngorms), Betws-y-Coed (Snowdonia), Grasmere (Lake District) and Minehead (Exmoor).

The hotel size will range from 30 rooms - Travelodge’s new ‘Metro’ style hotel - to over 100 bedrooms depending on the location and building requirements.

The company has said the expansion will create over 500 jobs across the country.

Mr Guy Parsons, Travelodge Chief Executive said: "The Staycation break is here to stay, more Britons are holidaying at home now than ever before.

"Traditionally Britons have opted for a coastal or city break but as more Britons explore the UK they are rediscovering new holiday hotspots and as a result, we have seen a significant surge in rural breaks.

"Annually over 60 million people visit the UK’s national parks and it’s clear that visitors are now seeking to turn their rural Daycation trip into a Staycation; in order to make the most of their time away.

"Therefore to capitalise on this growing trend, I have instructed my property team to go out and find 37 sites either in or just outside the national parks.

"In addition as a pet friendly hotel company, we have around 500 customers staying with us every week who holiday or travel with their dogs.

"By having a wider selection of rural locations we will be able to offer a wider selection of dog friendly holidays across the UK."

To kick start its national parks development drive, Travelodge has recently exchanged on a hotel in Glossop – ‘The Gateway to the Peak District’.

Located on Victoria Street, this 62-room hotel is situated above a JD Wetherspoon’s pub - in a former mill building.

Clare O’ Connor ,from the the UK Association of National Park Authorities, said: "National parks are here for everyone to enjoy whether for business or pleasure and this year thousands of people have been enjoying these areas for their ‘Staycations’, enjoying the great local produce, country pubs and restaurants and beautiful countryside.

"In these difficult times tranquil areas of mountains, meadows, moorlands, woods and wetlands provide a chance to take time out from the stresses of daily life as well as give the opportunity to make the most of the rich diversity of travel destinations within the UK."

Travelodge was the first budget hotel brand to launch in the UK in 1985. The firm now operates 475 hotels and 33,502 rooms across the UK, Ireland (11) and Spain (3).

Travelodge plans to grow its estate to 1,100 hotels and 100,000 rooms by 2025. Over 13 million people stayed in their hotels last year and 90% of reservations are currently made online at www.travelodge.co.uk, where room rates start at £19 per night. The chain employs over 6,000 staff.

Do you want to respond to this article? If so, click here to submit your thoughts and they may be published in print.