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Latest News Update: 1st October 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 1st November with our next hotels/conferences update .
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Latest News Update: 1st September 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 1st 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.
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Latest News: 1st August 2025
Latest group news:
Marriott International has acquired the lifestyle hotel brand citizenM, with its 37 hotels worldwide including four in London and one in Glasgow. On the subject of citizenM. The group has just opened citizenM Dublin St Patrick’s – see details below.
Several companies, including the owners of the Loungers bar chain and Poundstretcher, are considering a takeover of the Malmaison and Hotel du Vin group, a group which has been through a succession of owners over the last 20 years. We will watch this space.
Elegant Hotel Collection has added four new hotels members to its portfolio: Chateau Denmark in central London, Bingham Riverhouse in Richmond, Surrey, The Ebrington in Londonderry plus The Shepherd Mayfair, a boutique 82-bedroom hotel located in London’s historic Shepherd Market which is scheduled to open later this year.
Prestonfield House has joined the prestigious Relais & Châteaux collection – making it the group’s first hotel in Edinburgh. It is located on a 20-acre site, just a few minutes from the centre of Edinburgh, with 23 bedrooms and 600 sq-mt of events space accommodating up to 500 delegates.
KE Hotels group has acquired the Grade-II listed Queens Hotel Cheltenham. Located on a one-acre site adjacent to Imperial Gardens in the centre of Cheltenham, the hotel has 84 bedrooms, a restaurant and bar and an events suite for up to 120 delegates. It is the group’s fifth property in the UK.
The Royal Armouries in Leeds with 12 flexible events spaces which can host up to 2,500 delegates. has joined Venues of Excellence consortium of UK venues.
Australian international hotel group, TFE Hotels, is set to enter the UK market with the launch of two Adina-branded apartment-hotels: The Hobson Cambridge by Adina housed in a former police station with 56 bedrooms and The Wellington Glasgow by Adina with 98 apartments located just off George Square - both are expected to launch this autumn.
citizenM Dublin St Patrick’s is citizenM’s first hotel in Ireland. Now open, the hotel, with 245 bedrooms, is directly opposite St Patrick’s Cathedral in the centre of Dublin. It features a 24/7 canteenM, an open-air terrace and four societyM meeting rooms.
OYO Group is expanding its Sunday branded hotels: The company will add Mercure Cardiff Holland House, Mercure Walton Hall in Warwick, Mercure Boxhill Burford Bridge in Dorking, Mercure London Staines, Mercure Exeter Rougemont Hotel and Mercure Winchester Wessex to its portfolio. The hotels will be refurbished under its Sunday brand.
BH group has acquired Burlington Hotel on the Eastbourne seafront with 159 bedrooms, a restaurant and bar. The group now operates eight hotels in the UK including Hotel Indigo Manchester Victoria.
Latest individual hotel news starting in London and then heading north:
The Derby London City, Curio Collection by Hilton is expected to open in early 2026. It will be the tenth property to open under the Curio Collection by Hilton brand in the UK. The hotel in Great Tower Street in the City will have 237 bedrooms and suites, an all-day dining restaurant, coffee house and bar, a 24-hour gym, meeting and events suites plus private dining.
A fully refurbished Olympia London is expected to open later this year. The project has included a refurbishment of the existing exhibition halls plus a new live-music hall and two hotels: Hyatt Regency London Olympia with 204 bedrooms and suites and CitizenM London Olympia with 146 bedrooms.
Radisson RED London Twickenham Is set to open later this year on the south side of London’s Allianz Stadium. It will form part of the wider Twickenham Experience complex, which includes the World Rugby Museum, RFU Conference & Events Centre and TW2 Health & Wellbeing. The hotel is undergoing refurbishment and rebranding from the existing Marriott Hotel at Twickenham Stadium, and will feature a new design with 150 bedrooms, flexible events spaces and all-day dining options. More details to follow.
Dumbleton Hall Hotel in the Cotswolds, currently closed, is set reopen this autumn following completion of a major renovation. Located between Evesham and Tewkesbury, it has 38 bedrooms, a restaurant, lounge and bar, three meeting and events suites plus 19 acres of private gardens.
Mallory Court Hotel and Spa in Leamington Spa has been named Best Large Hotel in England at the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence 2025. The hotel has 43 bedrooms, 3 meeting and events suites seating up to 60 delegates theatre-style plus private dining facilities.
The Belfry Hotel & Resort in Sutton Coldfield is set to open 149 new bedrooms with views over the Brabazon golf course - available from 1st August.
A Grade II listed clock tower on the edge of Liverpool city centre and formerly a NatWest bank building is set to be developed as a boutique hotel. Renovation work is planned to start shortly. We will monito its progress.
Hotel Indigo Leeds officially opened on 15th July. Located on Lower Briggate in the centre of Leeds, the 107-bedroom hotel includes a Mediterranean-inspired bar and restaurant and three meeting rooms, the largest seating 120 theatre style.
The Wainstones Hotel in Broughton, North Yorkshire has reopened following a refurbishment. The hotel now has 20 individually designed bedrooms, a new bar and restaurant plus two private dining rooms and a flexible function suite.
The Ardgowan Hotel in St Andrews, Scotland is to be renamed The Kithmore following completion of a £7.5million refurbishment and extension programme. Due to open in June 2026 the new-look hotel will include 44 bedrooms and suites plus a 60-cover restaurant and bar plus an enviable location - a stone’s throw from The Old Course at St Andrews.
The Edinburgh Grand, a landmark residence on St Andrew Square, has just reopened as Marriott’s first Luxury Collection hotel in Scotland. It includes 50 apartments each with a fully equipped kitchen, two meeting and events suites with the largest room seating up to 50 delegates theatre style plus a 24-hour gym and fitness centre.
Finally, Crieff Hydro Family of Hotels, with seven hotels across Scotland has just been given a Gold Award by the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS), recognizing the steps the group takes towards supporting members of the Armed Forces community – including veterans, cadets, reservists and their families.
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Latest News Update: 15th 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 27th 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 15th. 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 1st. 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 600th 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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Latest News Update: 15th August 2025
Our latest update starts as usual in London and then heads north. We finish with general conference and meeting information from around the UK.
IHG Hotels & Resorts have just opened the latest addition to its UK & Ireland portfolio – Hotel Indigo London Clerkenwell. It is in Clerkenwell Road, a five-minute walk from Farringdon Station. The hotel has 143 bedrooms and suites, each reflecting the clockmaking and goldsmiths character and history of the area. The hotel has two on-site restaurants and two meeting and events suites seating 40 and 20 delegates.
The Dutch-based The July Hotels Group has just opened its first UK aparthotel in the UK. The July London Victoria is located in Vauxhall Bridge Road, a two-minute walk from Victoria tube and coach stations. It has 114 bedrooms, a restaurant and bar, a gym and a wellness area. The hotel has four meeting and events suites with the largest seating up to 400 delegates theatre style.
Crowne Plaza London Kingston has completed a multi-million-pound renovation, with redesigned bedrooms, upgraded public spaces and refreshed meeting facilities. This is the final phase of the refurbishment ahead of further expansion planned for early 2026. The hotel is located in Surbiton on the banks of the River Thames about one mile from Surbiton Station. It has 121 bedrooms and suites, a restaurant, bar and fitness centre and four conference rooms with the largest room accommodating up to 250 delegates.
Marriott International has opened its first hotel in Brighton - Four Points Flex by Sheraton Brighton. The hotel, formerly the Kings Hotel on Brighton seafront has 95 refurbished rooms over three connected town houses, a restaurant and bar plus two meeting rooms holding 100 people.
Wilde Aparthotels, Cambridge City Centre has opened within walking distance to Cambridge’s Jesus Green Park and the River Cam. The Wilde, Cambridge City Centre has 229 fully equipped apartments, a bar and lounge plus an outdoor terrace and co-working spaces.
Two developments in central Manchester: Firstly, Novotel Manchester Centre in Dickinson Street has opened its new Exchange Bar & Restaurant with an open-plan layout.
ibis Manchester Centre on Portland Street has opened Chill 96 designed for informal gatherings or smaller-scale business events for up to 30 delegates seated.
Marriott Courtyard Sheffield hotel will finally open this September. It was originally due to open in summer 2023 but then construction work on site stopped. Located a short distance from both the centre of Sheffield and the M1/J33, the hotel will have 150 bedrooms and suites, a restaurant, bar and a fitness centre plus one meeting room to seat 16 boardroom style.
Canadian hotel group Sandman Signature, the new owners of The Quays Hotel in Sheffield are planning extensive renovations to create a new-look four-star hotel in the city centre. The 128-bedroom hotel was formerly a Best Western Plus hotel. It has nine meeting rooms, all with flexible layout options for between two and 250 delegates.
The former Ibis York Centre on the Mount in York which closed last May has reopened following a major refurbishment. It is now an Ibis Styles hotel with 110 bedrooms which has been extended from 94 rooms.
Also in York, The Grand York, is currently undergoing a major £2.5million refurbishment of its spa and gym facilities set to complete in early 2026. The hotel currently has 207 bedrooms plus five meeting and events suites with the largest seating 120 delegates theatre style
The Met Hotel Leeds, in the centre of the city, is undergoing a major refurbishment aimed at preserving the building’s historic features. Work is expected to complete this November. Refurbishments planned include the restaurant and bar plus the hotel’s extensive meeting and events facilities. The hotel currently has 125 bedrooms plus 14 flexible meeting and events spaces.
Aberdeen is planning to introduce a 7% visitor levy in all probability from 1st April 2027 - to generate revenue for enhancing leisure and business tourism in the city.
The Isle of Rassay Distillery on the island of Raasay is planning to open five luxury lodges this autumn. The distillery, the only one in Scotland where guests can stay overnight in the same building as a working distillery, lies in the Highlands, between the Isle of Skye and mainland Scotland. The accommodation will be available from this October and November until the distillery closes for a short break over winter.
Group news:
Intercontinental Hotels Group now operate over one million bedrooms globally following a record number of openings in the first half of its financial year. The group has doubled its brand portfolio to 20 brands in the past decade and is now operating over 6,700 hotels in more than 100 countries.
Cohort Capital have secured the funds to finance two four-star hotels in the UK, one in London and another in the North of England - with a combined 510 bedrooms. More details to follow.
Finally, The Arora Hotel Group have submitted their own Heathrow expansion plans to the government in response to the recently published proposals from the airport owners. Plans include a shorter new runway which would avoid the need to divert the M25 motorway. Arora Group said its plans called ‘Heathrow West’, could have a new runway fully operational by 2035, with a new terminal which would open in two phases, in 2036 and 2040. Watch this space.
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Latest News: 1st July 2025
We start this month’s news update with the latest hotel news and venue developments – and finish with some meeting industry facts and figures. .
There is not long to wait now for the opening of what is being billed as ‘London’s priciest hotel’. It is the Chancery Rosewood opening on the site of the former U.S. embassy in Grosvenor Square, Mayfair. It opens in August with 144 suites each with butler service plus two penthouse suites named after monarchs Queen Elizabeth and King Charles and each priced at £60,000 per night. We will check out the meeting and events facilities when it opens.
IHG Hotels & Resorts have opened of Hotel Indigo London Clerkenwell - a four-star boutique hotel at 2 Clerkenwell Road – a five-minute walk from Farringdon Station. The hotel has 143 bedrooms and suites, a restaurant and a Grade II-listed Victorian pub plus two meeting and events rooms seating up to 60 delegates for workshops and private dining.
Radisson Hotel Group is set to open its first Radisson RED property in central London in partnership with PPHE Hotel Group. It will be located in Leman Street, near the City of London and Liverpool Street Station. The hotel will have a minimum of 182 bedrooms, restaurant, bar, gym and office space and is scheduled to open in 2029.
Bower House located in London’s Pimlico and described as an ‘affordable boutique bolthole’ is scheduled to launch in March 2026, with just 10 bedrooms.
Cambridge Apartment Hotels Ltd, a subsidiary of the Lamington Group, are the new owners of Shire Hall in Cambridge, the former headquarters of Cambridgeshire County Council. They are seeking planning approved to convert the building into a hotel.
Accor has announced that Lucknam Park Hotel & Spa, located just outside Bath, will be the first hotel in the UK to join its luxury Emblems Collection. The hotel has 42 bedrooms plus nine cottage country houses, a Michelin-starred restaurant, a wellness spa and equestrian centre - all set in 500 acres of parkland. An opening towards the end of 2025 is anticipated.
Coombe Abbey Hotel in Coventry - a 700-year-old building but just 30 years as a hotel, has just completed a refurbishment of eight of its historic meetingand events roomConstruction has begun on a new Hampton by Hilton in Telford’s Station Quarter regeneration scheme in the centre of the town. The 6-storey hotel will have 142 bedrooms, a restaurant and bar – other facilities await publication. It is scheduled to open in 2027.
Marriott plan to add three Edinburgh properties to its portfolio: The Edinburgh Grand will be rebranded under their Luxury Collection. Old Town Chambers will be rebranded under their Autograph Collection. Finally, The Colourist on Princes Street will join Marriott’s Tribute Portfolio when it opens in 2027.
The Marcus Hotel Portrush has just opened in Northern Ireland. It is the first Tapestry Collection by Hilton hotel to open in the province. Based in a Victorian building which has undergone a multi-million-pound makeover, the new hotel has 80 bedrooms and suites, a restaurant and bar and a fitness centre. It has opened just in time for the 153rd Open Golf Championship which takes place this July at Royal Portrush.
Group news:
Best Western Hotels group has increased its presence in the UK with the acquisition of seven independent hotels. Recent additions include Best Western Sheffield City hotel with 100 bedrooms and Best Western Ebbw Vale hotel with 37 bedrooms. In its luxury groupings The Kings Arms Hotel in Christchurch has joined the group’s WorldHotels Distinctive collection.
Lakeland Kendal hotel in Cumbria and the Casa Hotel in Yateley, Hampshire, have joined the Sure Hotel Collection by Best Western.
Rocco Forte Hotels is eyeing country house hotels to rival luxury competitors – reports The Caterer. Rocco Forte Hotels is seeking locations for the group’s Rocco Forte House brand. It is aiming to expand its presence in the UK, with a particular focus on London. Rocco Forte House is a brand of luxury, serviced apartments designed to address what the group sees as a shortage of high-quality options in the market.
Finally, some facts and figures about the meeting and events industry:
The UK business events industry is a major economic contributor to the UK Exchequer and provides around £33.6 billion to the UK economy. Exhibitions, conferences, meetings, and people travelling to the UK to attend events contribute the lion’s share of this total. According to Visit Britain around 6.5 million business visitors visit the UK each year with 1.5 million business event visitors attending meetings and conferences. These business visitors are thought to spend around £5.2 billion.
Furthermore, recent research by the UK Conference and Meeting Survey (UKCAMS) shows the average daily delegate rate achieved by venues for conferences and meetings in 2024 was up 11% and the average 24 hour/residential rate was up 4% over the previous year.
The corporate sector accounted for 52% of the events market up from 46% in 2019). The government and the public sector accounted for 28% with the Associations market at 20%.
Interestingly, (from our point of view), over a quarter of all events in 2024 were organised by a professional conference organiser or an event management agency.
We will be back with our next update on 1st August