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Published: 16 November 2025

Hotel news starting in London and the South-East and then moving north:

The new St Regis London is scheduled to open in Mayfair in mid-2026. It will include 195 bedrooms and 64 suites, a signature restaurant, a jazz bar and library plus a private dining room for up to 18 guests with butler service. Leisure facilities will include a gym and two spa suites with plunge pools plus saunas. The hotel will be located at the corner of Conduit Street and New Bond Street.

The former Corus Hotel Hyde Park which closed in September 2025 for a major £42m renovation is set to reopen in late autumn 2026 as Hyde & Seek Hotel. It is now part of the Tribute Portfolio, one of Marriott Bonvoy hotels portfolio. The hotel with 209 bedrooms and suites will include an all-day food and drink concept, gym and fitness studio plus a range of meeting and events suites.  It is located at 1 Lancaster Gate, directly opposite Hyde Park in central London.

Strand Palace Hotel has just unveiled a £2 million meetings & events renovation – including 12 new meeting and events spaces, bringing the total on-site events spaces to 16. The programme marks the next phase of the hotel's overall £55 million refurbishment programme. The hotel is located on the Strand, in the heart of London near Covent Garden and Trafalgar Square.

The Zetter Bloomsbury is set to open in February 2026 in central London. It is housed in a row of Georgian townhouses close to the British Museum - with 68 bedrooms, a restaurant, bar and a gym. The hotel will have two meeting and events suites.

Sofitel London St James in central London has unveiled six redesigned signature suites by Paris-based interior architecture studio Pierre-Yves Rochon (PYR). Four ‘Prestige Suites’ are now open with the final two ‘Flagship Suites’ launching in January 2026. The result is ‘a stunning collection of suites that embody both French sophistication and British eccentricity’.

Drey is a new hotel concept set to open close to London’s Earls Court station later this year. It will be a 125-bedroom hotel with minimum staffing so guests check-in online, enter via keyless access and manage their stay through a dedicated app. Vending machines replace the traditional lobby bar and restaurant. The concept is designed to reduce the guests’ hotel bill.

London Beckenham Travelodge has just opened with 72 bedrooms on Beckenham High Street close to train, tram and bus connections into central London. There are now over 80 Travelodge hotels across London.

Great Hallingbury Manor Hotel in Bishop’s Stortford has reopened following a refurbishment. The new-look hotel includes 50 bedrooms and suites, a new restaurant, bar and lounge plus dining and private events spaces.

A restored 17th Century limestone building in the centre of the Cotswold town of Broadway has just reopened as the ten-bedroom boutique-styled House of George hotel complete with a fine-dining restaurant.

Visitor attraction, Drayton Manor located near Tamworth in Staffordshire has announced a major investment in its conferencing facilities.  It has refurbished its largest meeting room: the Tower as well as the conference facilities in the Hamilton Suite. The Tower Suite will accommodate up to 450 delegates for conferences, exhibitions or award ceremonies. The Hamilton Suite will accommodate up to 180 delegates for a meeting with breakout space available in the Victoria Lounge. Drayton Manor Hotel has 150 bedrooms plus an on-site restaurant and bar.

The Bear gastropub in Tattenhall, Cheshire is opening eight boutique hotel bedrooms in December following a major refurbishment.

The Hampton Hotel is a Georgian townhouse pub-restaurant opposite Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh. The new owners have plans to reopen the venue as a ‘whisky experience’ hotel with six bedrooms.

Group News:

SmartRental Group is about to launch Malacuna – a new hostel which ‘redefines the traditional hostel experience for the modern urban traveller’. The branding is already well established across Spain and Portugal. The group is planning openings in Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham.

Malacuna Manchester will be located the city’s Northern Quarter with 37 rooms and 132 beds plus a restaurant and bar.

Malacuna Liverpool opens in the city centre with 90 bedrooms and 362 beds plus a restaurant, bar and events space.

Malacuna Birmingham opens close to Snowhill Station in the city centre with 39 bedrooms and 126 beds plus a restaurant and bar.

All three are expected to open in the New Year. Dates to be advised.

Accor has launched its new Emblems Collection in the UK - their flagship property will be: Lucknam Park Hotel & Spa Emblems Collection.  ‘Each hotel in the Emblems Collection celebrates unique, character-rich properties that reflect the soul of their destination, from grand heritage mansions to contemporary architectural icons and serene nature retreats’ – claim the group

CHS, meeting and events industry professionals are planning to combine their existing Birmingham and Leeds events to create one super-show in Manchester next year. The new event will see visitors and exhibitors from both shows arrive in Manchester on the 30 September.

And finally:  Britannia Hotels have been named the UK's worst hotel chain for the past 12 consecutive years. It was ranked last out of 52 hotel chains by consumer group ‘Which’. Yet the group appears to go from strength to strength. It currently operates 64 hotels throughout the UK with 10,000+ bedrooms, a wide range of conference and meeting facilities and an extensive refurbishment programme in operation.

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Published: 15 October 2025

The latest news:

A&O Hostels has acquired the former DoubleTree by Hilton, Docklands Riverside, for its first London property. It will be rebranded as a&o London Docklands Riverside and is scheduled to open in November 2025 with 500 bedrooms.

The Germany-based boutique hotel group - AMANO, has acquired Waterman House on London’s Kingsway. The former office building is to be converted into a new boutique hotel with 70 bedrooms with a new ground-floor food retail concept. Further details to follow. The new hotel will be located a short walk away from the group’s other London property:  Hotel AMANO Covent Garden.

The Sloane Club, the private members club in London’s Chelsea, has reopened following a two-year, £20 million upgrade. The Club now includes a co-working hub, flexible meeting areas and a private screening room for pitches and presentations - plus 56 bedrooms and 10 suites available for members and their guests.

Crafted at Powermills is a new ‘lifestyle’ brand hotel, set to open in Battle in Sussex this November. Built overlooking a 7-acre private lake and woodland, the hotel will include 55 bedrooms and suites, a restaurant and bar, a member’s club and two three-bedroomed cottages.

The Francis Hotel Bath is planning to unveil its £14million refurbishment this November. The refurbishment has included all 98 bedrooms and suites, the hotel lobby, a new restaurant plus the addition of a dedicated spa. The refurbishment will mark the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth in the city.

New owners of The Mount Somerset which closed earlier this year, are planning an extensive renovation of the Grade-2 listed building. They plan to rename the manor house which dates from the early 19^th century back to its original name, Henlade House, prior to relaunching as an events venue.

The Hobson Cambridge by Adina is a new hotel opening in St Andrew’s Street in Cambridge on 10 November. It is an apartment-styled hotel with 56 units and it will be the first opening of the Australian owned hotel group in the UK.

Construction work has just begun on a new Hampton by Hilton in Wigan. Opening is planned for winter 2027. The 6-storey hotel will have 144 bedrooms and suites, meeting facilities, restaurant and bar and a gym.

The Dunblane Hydro in Scotland has joined the Apex portfolio. The hotel, with over 200 bedrooms, was  once a Victorian health spa resort. Apex are planning a major refurbishment of the hotel which includes conference spaces to accommodate up to 500 delegates.

Group News:

IHG Hotels who launched their Garner branded hotels in the UK earlier this year now operate five Garner properties in Preston, Edinburgh, Nottingham, Birmingham and Reading. A sixth hotel in central London - Garner Hotel London Paddington – is scheduled to open next year.

Hilton is set to launch its 25^th hotel brand this November - Outset Collection by Hilton. It joins the group’s ‘lifestyle’ portfolio. The first opening will be in Chicago. Hilton anticipates a future 500 Outset Collection hotels across the United States and Canada.

Radisson Hotel Group has opened its 100^th Radisson Individuals branded property. The world-wide branding was launched in 2020.

The Pride of Britain hotels group has added two hotels to its portfolio – The Headland  in Newquay, Cornwall and The Atlantic Hotel in Jersey.

Travelodge has acquired two hotels in Burton-upon-Trent and Glasgow Cumbernauld. Burton-upon-Trent Travelodge has 68 bedrooms and is located in the town centre, next to the railway station.  Glasgow Cumbernauld Travelodge has 57 bedrooms and is situated close to the M80,

English Lakes Hotels Resorts & Venues with a range of venues in the Lake District and North Lancashire are now accepting Bitcoin payments for rooms and leisure services in all its venues.

….and finally, The Country Dog Hotel in Bridgwater, Somerset offers bespoke luxury boarding for dogs while their owners are away. The hotel claims to have a fully trained team of professionals and specialists working 24 hours a day to ensure their doggy guests are safe and happy. The dogs can sleep with one of the staff on a human bed, a dog bed, a sofa or the hotel will emulate the dog’s sleeping routine at home. A luxury door-to-door collection and delivery is part of the VIPs package.  Now the hotel has added a spa to its facilities.

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Published: 14 September 2025

Latest London news:

The Chancery Rosewood is a new hotel which is now open in the former US Embassy in Grosvenor Square in central London. There are 146 bedrooms and suites, along with several restaurants and bars including a rooftop bar, a spa, a ballroom plus retail spaces. The hotel offers a variety of meeting and events spaces with the largest room – The Grand Ballroom: seating up to 725 delegates theatre style and the smallest - The Boardroom: seating 16 delegates boardrooms style.

A new development site in central London near the City of London and Tower Bridge, will see a new Radisson RED hotel open with around 182 bedrooms, a restaurant, bar and gym opening - but not before 2029.

Great Northern Hotel in King’s Cross, central London has rebranded as Kaya Great Northern Hotel following its recent acquisition by the Turkish hotel group. The hotel, located between Kings Cross and St Pancras rail terminals, has 88 bedrooms and suites plus three meeting and events suites accommodating up to 92 delegates.

Immersive Hospitality Management is partnering with Marriott Hotels & Resorts to open a new property under the Marriott Tribute branding. The 4-star property will be located in London's Hyde Park area and is expected to open in late 2025 or early 2026.

House of Gods London is a new hotel opening in Canary Wharf on 27^th October 2025 – promising ‘immersive glamour on a grand scale’. It will have 79 bedrooms plus a 300-cover rooftop restaurant and bar called Sacred Garden with views over Eden Dock. The Museum of London Docklands, Greenwich, Tower Bridge and the Tower of London are all within short walking distance.

The Edwin Hotel is a new hotel that has just opened in Trebovir Road in London’s Earls Court. The hotel, formerly The Mayflower Hotel, has 60 boutique-styled bedrooms, a private garden and an open-plan ground-floor area for informal meetings and continental breakfasts.

Sir Devonshire Square, the first Sir Hotel in London, had a soft opening on September 15^th. The hotel has 81 bedrooms and suites, a restaurant and bar plus a ground-floor lounge. Additional features like The Cover, a signature restaurant, will be launching later this year. The hotel joins existing Sir Hotels in Amsterdam, Barcelona, Ibiza, Berlin and Prague.

Heading north:

The Pig in the Cotswolds has just opened Home Farm House a restored three-bedroom cottage, with a kitchen and living area - a short walk from the main hotel building. The hotel complex is four miles from Cirencester.

Staying in the Cotswolds: The Hyll is a new hotel which has just opened in Charingworth near Chipping Campden in the Cotswolds. It is a fully restored 17th century manor house set in 60 acres of meadow and woodland. There are eight bedrooms in the main house, plus four suites and 14 rooms in the adjoining buildings. A new barn for events is a future development with a 2026 opening anticipated.

Staying with pigs:  THE PIG-on-the-Farm's official opening date is November 1^st. It is located in 53 acres of farmland five miles from Stratford upon Avon. It will have 35 bedrooms and suites in the main house and its outbuildings plus a restaurant and two private dining rooms.

It has been two years in development and now the Belfry Hotel and Resort in Sutton Coldfield in the Midlands has opened Brabazon House. It is a new events venue plus a new fitness and leisure club and 149 new bedrooms, almost doubling the size of the hotel - and with views across The Belfry’s Brabazon golf course. The Masters Suite at 852 sqm is now the resort’s largest events space with a maximum capacity of 920 delegates.

The Garner Hotel has just opened in the Acocks Green district of south Birmingham, midway between the city centre and the NEC/Birmingham Airport. The hotel, formerly the Bridge House Hotel, has undergone a major refurbishment and now has 51 bedrooms, a restaurant and bar, two meeting rooms with the largest seating up to 50 delegates theatre style plus on-site parking – and it is close to Birmingham City Football Club.

Staying with football, The Medlock, part of the Radisson Hotel group, is set to open in Manchester City’s new entertainment development in 2026. The Medlock will have 401 bedrooms and suites plus a wide range of conference and events options within the Etihad Stadium. Further details to follow in due course.

Travelodge has just opened its 600^th hotel in Skegness, Lincolnshire. It is an 80-bedroom hotel featuring a top floor café/bar and is located just 400 metres from the beach.

The General Tarleton is an 18th-century coaching inn in Ferrensby village, North Yorkshire. It has reopened following restoration and refurbishment. The historic inn located just outside Harrogate has eight bedrooms and a private dining room as well as a bar and terrace.

Group news: Oravel Stays Limited, parent company of OYO and Sunday Hotels in the UK, has rebranded as Prism. OYO operates over 200 hotels across 65 cities in the UK. Sunday Hotels, on the other hand, opened in the UK in 2024 with the Lansbury Heritage Hotel in London but has since added hotels in Cardiff, Warwick, Dorking, Staines, Exeter, and Winchester.

Finally – the adventures of a silver spoon!  80 years since it was ‘borrowed’ by a young couple staying at the Queens Hotel in Southsea, it has been returned to the hotel after being discovered in a drawer in New South Wales, Australia. The hotel was sent a padded envelope containing the spoon plus a letter from the couple’s son, who wrote that he had borrowed it 83 years earlier while his parents were on leave. And the hotel’s reaction to receiving the parcel:  “We couldn’t believe our eyes when we saw the silver teaspoon - it has our monogram on it - especially as it had travelled all that way.”

 

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Published: 31 October 2025

Our latest hotel and conference venue news update in the UK starts as usual in London before heading north.

Spring 2026 will see the opening of the new Waldorf Astoria London Admiralty Arch on The Mall in London opposite Buckingham Palace. This luxury hotel, originally due to open in 2022, will comprise 100 bedrooms, plus restaurants and bars and a 320-cover ballroom and reception on the lower ground floor. 

The St. Regis London is expected to open in mid-2026 following the complete redevelopment and transformation of the former Westbury Mayfair Hotel. It will feature 195 bedrooms, including 64 suites, a 90-seat signature restaurant plus a private dining room for up to 18 guests, a jazz bar and a library. Leisure facilities include two spa suites and a fully equipped gym.

In London plans have been approved by Wandsworth Council to convert the former Morleys department store in Mitcham Road into a 92-bedroom Zedwell Tooting Hotel. A spring 2027 opening is anticipated. Further details to follow in due course.

Six Senses London Hotel is set to open in London’s Bayswater in early 2026. It is located in the former Whiteleys department store and will include 109 bedrooms and suites, a restaurant and bar and a luxury wellness suite.

2026 will see the opening of The Derby London City, Curio Collection by Hilton. The hotel is taking bookings from May. It will include 34 contemporary designed rooms and suites with panoramic views of the City skyline. The hotel includes an all-day restaurant, bar and coffeehouse, a fitness centre and a boardroom to seat up to 20 delegates.

Advance notice - The Accor Hotels owned Ennismore Group is planning to launch its first Delano lifestyle hotel in London towards the end of 2026. The hotel, close to Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park, will have 67 bedrooms, a restaurant and lounge plus meeting spaces. Further details to follow.

Mad Swans is a new countryside hotel in the Mendip Hills between Bristol and Bath. It is described as ‘redefining modern hospitality’ complete with eco-cabin stays. It features ‘The Potting Shed’ its main restaurant, 12-hole golf, padel and pickleball, a driving range, putt patch and darts. The hotel currently has eight eco cabins but more are planned to open in the near future.

The Hide is a new 25-bedroom affordable hotel which has just opened on the edge of the Chatsworth Estate, in Baslow, Derbyshire. The hotel is targeted at families and groups and incorporates The Hide Grill and Pizzeria. 

Radisson Hotels Group has signed the New Bath Hotel and Spa in Matlock, Derbyshire. The hotel with 54 bedrooms, a restaurant, bar, spa facilities and two meeting and events suites is set to join the Radisson Individuals portfolio in December 2025.

The DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel and Spa in Chester is planning a major ‘railway-inspired’ refurbishment of 139 bedrooms. The revamp includes bedroom upgrades plus improved lighting and in-room technology. This follows a previous refurbishment of 80 bedrooms plus a new-look reception, lounge and lobby areas. The hotel has nine meeting and events suites with the largest seating up to 300 delegates theatre style.

The Municipal Hotel & Spa Liverpool has just been awarded the city’s first and only AA 5-star rating. The hotel in Dale Street, central Liverpool, includes 179 bedrooms, a restaurant, an afternoon tearoom, a bar and a Thermae Spa. The hotel has six meeting and events suites with the largest seating up to 60 delegates.

The site of a former banana warehouse in York, now reduced to rubble, will become home to a 168-bed Marriott Hotel. Construction has started on-site and opening is anticipated in 2027.

Malmaison Newcastle has now completed its redesign and refurbishment of all 122 bedrooms and suites. The hotel is housed in a Grade II listed former Co-Operative Society warehouse located on the Quayside. The hotel includes a restaurant and bar, four meeting and events suites with the largest seating up to 80 delegates.

Group news:

IHG Hotels and Resorts have revealed plans to launch a new premium collection hotel brand “in the coming months.” The new collection is said to complement their premium conversion brand, voco, which now has over 200 hotels in more than 30 countries. We will monitor developments.

Pub and bar operator Mitchells & Butlers have published plans to open a new hotel under its Innkeeper’s Collection brand above one of its Leeds city centre venues. The upper floors of its Nation of Shopkeepers pub – a 19th-century Grade II-listed building – will house a 42-bedroom hotel above a new reception area on the first floor. The 19th-century Grade II-listed building originally housed offices, shops and a warehouse. It is located at the corner of Cookridge Street and Great George Street.

Finally, Manchester Airport hotels and venues offer a range of facilities for both national and international meetings and events plus ease of access via the airport and the M56 motorway nearby. Hotels include Radisson Blu Hotel Manchester Airport with 360 bedrooms and 27 flexible event spaces; Clayton Hotel Manchester Airport with 365 bedrooms and flexible meeting spaces; Crowne Plaza Manchester Airport features 299 bedrooms and eight meeting rooms for up to 70 delegates - the hotel also has 320 parking spaces and a free airport shuttle – and Concorde Conference Centre accommodating up to 600 delegates for an event.

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Published: 29 September 2025

The latest London news:

Radisson Red London Twickenham has reopened at the Allianz Stadium following an extensive refurbishment – the site also includes the World Rugby Museum, Twickenham Experience Conference & Events and TW2 Health & Fitness Club. The hotel has 150 bedrooms and eight meeting and events suites.

Amsterdam-based boutique hotel group Sir Hotels has opened its first London property - Sir Devonshire Square - with 81 bedrooms and set within a restored 17th century textile warehouse in Shoreditch. The hotel has a lounge, restaurant and bar.

House of Gods Hotel will officially open on 27 October in London’s Canary Wharf. The hotel will have 79 rooms and suites plus a new development - the Sacred Garden: a 300-capacity rooftop bar and restaurant overlooking Eden Dock and with panoramic views across London’s skyline. It will be the third hotel in the group joining House of Gods Hotels in Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Property developers Arora Group have acquired the Novotel London West in Hammersmith. The hotel with 630 bedroom and suites plus 33 meeting and events suites now joins fellow London hotel: InterContinental London – The O2 in the group.

The Derby London City, Curio Collection by Hilton, is a new hotel expected to open in London in early  2026. It is based in former offices in Fleet Street. Dominus Real Estate Developers are converting the offices and the new hotel with 234 bedrooms will also be managed by Dominus Hospitality.

Plans have been approved to convert Custom House, a Grade I-listed building on the north bank of the River Thames in London into a 179-room hotel, with its Thameside path to be redeveloped as a public space. The hotel itself will include a basement spa, cultural café, gallery and events spaces. We will monitor its progress.

Dominus have submitted plans to convert an existing telephone exchange into a 240-room hotel in Camden in London. Located at 123 Judd Street, the hotel is expected to feature a restaurant, café and bar. We will monitor developments.

Down to the south coast before heading north:

The Grade-II listed Dover Marina Hotel has just joined the Tapestry Collection by Hilton, following a multi-million-pound restoration. It is the first Hilton-branded hotel in Dover. It has 122 bedrooms and suites, a restaurant, bar and Waterfront Spa. The hotel has three meeting and events suites with the largest seating 200 delegates theatre style.

The Castle Hotel Windsor, located opposite Windsor Castle, will begin a £9.5million full refurbishment of all its 108 bedrooms and suites this November to be completed in 2026.

Millennium Point Conference Centre in Birmingham city centre has unveiled a brand-new £700,000 commercial kitchen, built to cater for up to 1,000 guests per day for conferences, exhibitions, banquets and private events.

In central Manchester two new Hilton hotels are planned: Hampton by Hilton Manchester City Centre on Deansgate with 358 bedrooms and suites, restaurant, bar and fitness area plus meeting space. Opening in early 2026. Meanwhile, Motto by Hilton will be located in Piccadilly Basin close to Manchester Piccadilly station with 154 bedrooms and suites, a restaurant, bar and fitness space. Opening planned in 2027.

The Birch Hotel, near Heywood in Greater Manchester, has announced its closure after over 50 years in business. The hotel had 30 bedrooms plus meeting and events facilities.

Supercity Aparthotels has just opened its latest property, The Jubilee – in Leeds city centre. The aparthotel with 63 suites is located in a restored Grade II-listed building on The Headrow, The group is planning to open another property – Micklegate in York – later this year.

Plans have been published to convert the former Judges Country House Hotel Kirklevington, close to Stockton on Tees in North Yorkshire into a five-star spa hotel. The former hotel closed in 2023. The new plan outlines a hotel with 18 bedrooms, a restaurant and spa plus events spaces and garden lodges. We will follow developments.

The Grange Hotel in Grange-over-Sands Cumbria, has relaunched following completion of a multi-million-pound total refurbishment. The hotel has 56 contemporary styled bedrooms, a swimming pool, sauna and steam rooms plus eight function rooms to host up to 200 guests.

In Ireland, The Hoxton is set to open in Dublin’s Creative Quarter, this November. The hotel, the group’s first venture into Ireland has 129 bedrooms and suites plus an all-day restaurant and bar.

Group news:

Classic British Hotels collection of independent hotels has announced a new partnership with two Hogarths Hotels: Hogarths Solihull with 60 bedrooms and 7 meeting rooms and Hogarths Stone Manor in Kidderminster with 56 bedrooms and two meeting and events suites.

International property company, Vastint, is planning to sell part of their UK hotel portfolio. It includes up to 15 Marriott branded hotels plus Moxy branded hotels. The portfolio is valued at approximately £500 million.

Best Western Hotels has signed eight new properties to its portfolio. They include The Brackenborough Hotel and The Ashbourne Hotel Lincolnshire, The Clarence Gardens Hotel in Scarborough, Crooklands Hotel in Kendal, Thatcher’s Hotel in Surrey, Kingscliff Hotel in Clacton-on-Sea, Great Hallingbury Manor in Hertfordshire and the Sure Studio by Best Western Doncaster, a collection of long stay apartments built in the grounds of Best Western Premier Mount Pleasant Hotel. One more step in BWH Hotels’ five-year strategy to reach 20,000 rooms nationwide by 2029

Finally - The Netty, is a new boutique hotel which has just opened in central Oxford, inside a restored Victorian toilet block. It has just two 22 sq-mt suites tucked under the city’s streets, reached by stairs and flush with vintage pieces, textures and high ceilings. The gentlemen's toilets were originally built in 1895 and had been closed since 2008 following safety concerns.

 

We will be back 1^st November with our next hotels/conferences update .

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Published: 29 August 2025

Latest UK hotel and venue news updates starting in London, as usual, and then moving north.

The Derby London City, Curio Collection by Hilton is a new hotel expected to open in Great Tower Street in the heart of London’s Square Mile in early 2026. It will be the group’s tenth Curio Collection by Hilton branded hotel in the UK. It will include 237 bedrooms and suites, an all-day dining restaurant, coffee house and bar plus a 24-hour state-of-the-art gym, meeting rooms and private dining.

Queen Mary Mansions building, located near Buckingham Palace and currently The Ministry of Justice’s headquarters in central London has been acquired by Arora Group who plan to convert the 14 storey building into a luxury hotel – when the Ministry move out of the building which is not until 2028.

The Barnstaple Hotel in North Devon has reopened following a £2 million project to repair damage created by Storm Darragh in December 2024. The hotel temporarily closed in March to carry out essential repairs and upgrades. It reopened on 1st August with a new roof plus a refreshed new look and new Health & Leisure facilities.

Plans to build a 120-bedroom floating hotel in Cardiff Bay by 2027 have been unveiled. The project intends to “enrich the city’s waterfront and elevate visitor experiences” in Cardiff. The hotel will be designed to offer ‘a unique waterfront experience for both leisure and business travellers’. If plans are approved a 2027 launch is anticipated. We will monitor progress.

The Barn at Berryfield is a family-owned hospitality site situated close to the NEC in Warwickshire. It comprises a restaurant, private events space, a bar, pizzeria and artisan bakery - plus a newly opened 33 bedroom hotel in a former barn conversion.

The Belfry Hotel and Resort in Sutton Coldfield in the West Midlands opened 149 extra bedrooms plus a new fitness and leisure club on 1^st October.

The Hard Days Night Hotel, the Beatles-inspired hotel in Liverpool, has relaunched its restaurant with a brand-new name - North Sixty4 - taking inspiration from the Beatles song – When I’m Sixty-Four. It follows a major refurbishment at the hotel.

The four-star Mercure Sheffield St Paul’s Hotel and Spa has been acquired by 1912 Hotels St Pauls Ltd, the UK subsidiary of Hamburg-based 1912 Hotels GmbH. The hotel boasts the largest hotel-based conference and banqueting facility in the city with 169 bedrooms, restaurants, leisure facilities and ten meeting and events suites.

Radisson Blu Glasgow has now unveiled its refurbished meeting and events facilities - the final stage of a £15 million refurbishment project which has included all 247 bedrooms. The hotel has 12 meeting and events spaces with the largest room seating up to 800 delegates for a conference. The hotel is situated in Argyle Street, a short walk from Glasgow Central Station.

Mollie’s Motel group is planning to open in Edinburgh in 2028. It will be the group’s fourth property. The new hotel will be close to Edinburgh Park Station and will include around 200 bedrooms, a diner and outdoor terrace plus meeting and events spaces. The plan is subject to planning approval.

Group news:

The Jarrold Group is anticipating an approval this autumn to convert the historic Grade-1 listed St James Mill in Norwich into an 88-bedroom hotel. The building dates from 1839 and was initially a yarn mill. We will monitor progress.

Sunday Hotel – a group of hotels operated by OYO - is planning to double the size of its portfolio by the end of 2026. The group was established in May 2023 and opened its first hotel – Lansbury Heritage Hotel in Canary Wharf in 2024.

Village Hotel Group have acquired the former DoubleTree by Hilton Sheffield Park in Sheffield. It will undergo a multi-million-pound refurbishment before rebranding as the 35th Village Hotel in the UK in December - with a Village Health & Wellness Club, a Pub & Grill, an on-site Starbucks plus meeting and events space.

Leading Hotels of the World have added ten new member hotels to their portfolio, including its first property in Mongolia as well as expanding its Caribbean hotel collection.

Travelodge which currently operates just over 600 hotels is planning to add 20 new hotels this year, 11 of which have already opened.

Marriott Hotels group has acquired the lifestyle brand citizenM. -  a group with 37 hotels, comprising 8,789 rooms, across more than 20 cities in the U.S., Europe and Asia Pacific.

IHG Hotels & Resorts has added The Manchester Deansgate Hotel to its portfolio. The Manchester Deansgate Hotel, located in Beetham Tower in the heart of Manchester’s city centre, was formerly a Hilton property. It is set to become an InterContinental by 2027, the fifth InterContinental property in IHG Hotels & Resorts’ UK and Ireland portfolio. Throughout the transition period it will operate as The Manchester Deansgate Hotel. A major refurbishment is planned. Details to follow.

Plans for future hotels:

Plans have been approved to convert The Elms, a former care home in Whittlesey, Cambridgeshire which closed in 2023 into a luxury hotel complete with a thermal spa. We will follow developments

Plans have just been approved for a new 164-bedroom hotel in Belfast. The site is currently a surface level car park and a retail and office unit located at the junction of Botanic Avenue and Donegall Pass in central Belfast. More details to follow.

And finally: the first bed and breakfast for butterflies has just opened at Horwood House Hotel in Buckinghamshire. It’s a range of miniature beach huts where butterflies can shelter in the rain or stay overnight. The site includes an ‘all you can eat’ buffet breakfast of lavender and buddleia bushes alongside. Apparently eleven different species of butterfly have been spotted booking in for the night.