Travelodge seeks £135m National Parks expansion

Travelodge is seeking to capitalise on the trend for the staycation by opening 37 hotels near the UK's 15 national parks.

The development of the hotels - costing around £135m - will see the fast-growing budget brand opening properties in locations such as Aviemore (in the Cairngorms National Park), Betws-y-Coed (Snowdonia), Grasmere (Lake District), Skipton (Yorkshire Dales) and Minehead (Exmoor).

Travelodge chief executive Guy Parsons said that more people holiday at home now than ever before, making over 60 million visits to the UK's national parks. "Traditionally, Britons have opted for a coastal or city break but as more of them explore the UK, they are rediscovering new holiday hotspots and as a result we have seen a significant surge in rural breaks," he said.

"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."

Parsons said that as a pet friendly company, the opening of more rural hotels will benefit families who want to take their dogs on holiday. Travelodge currently has around 500 customers peer week who travel with their dogs.

Travelodge has kickstarted its national park development drive by exchanging on a 62-bedroom hotel above a JD Wetherspoon pub situated in a former mill building in Glossop, Derbyshire, close to the Peak District.

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By Janet Harmer

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