Hotel du Vin, a UK boutique hotel chain that operates eight properties in England and Scotland, is expanding its portfolio with openings in Cheltenham, Cambridge and York this year.
Also in the pipeline are hotels in Edinburgh and Newcastle, due to open in the first half of 2008. Durham and Chester are also on the radar, although there are no specific locations as yet.
First to open on 2 July will be the Hotel du Vin Cheltenham, formerly the Carlton Hotel located in the Montpellier district of the town. The building has 49 bedrooms and a spa ” the brand”s signature bistro and bar are to be new additions to the property.
Cambridge is the second location for the company, in a building on Trumpington Street which in part dates back to medieval times. Opening on 16 July, the hotel boasts a cellar bar and bistro, a library and suites with private garden areas and one with a roof terrace.
Last in the line this year is the Hotel du Vin York, scheduled to open in November in the former Shepherd Homes Building on The Mount ” again with the trademark bistro and 44 rooms.
Next year”s additions to the brand are Edinburgh”s former blood transfusion testing laboratory in the old town, as well as Newcastle”s old Tyne and Wear Shipping Company headquarters located on the banks of the river. Both will open in the spring or early summer of 2008.
Amongst the latest Hotel du Vin offerings, sister hotel chain, Malmaison, is also to open a new venture in Reading on 27 July. Designed by bridge and railway pioneer and originally built as The Great Western Hotel in 1844, the hotel will house 72 bedrooms and suites, Caf” Mal, wine bar, brasserie and meeting and private dining rooms.
CEO of the two brands, Robert Cook, told ABTN his plans for future expansion: ”I”m looking into Chester and Poole as locations for Hotel du Vin properties, as well as Durham, St Andrews and Exeter. I am interested in taking the brand to London and I think areas like Chiswick or Chelsea would be a good fit for the hotel style, which has a heavy focus on food and beverage.
”We”ll be opening another Malmaison hotel in Aberdeen next year ” the old Queens Hotel on Queens Road. I”d also like to get a second Malmaison in London, perhaps in the West End, and after the success of our Liverpool property, it too may be a new-build hotel.
”I”ve also been looking into Dublin - I”d love to get there but I haven”t found anything I like yet."