National property and construction consultancy Wakemans is on site with a new £8million hotel in Bury St Edmunds, which represents a first in the town for the UK’s first budget hotel brand, Travelodge.
Wakemans is acting as tenant’s agent on the new 80-bedroom hotel and Bar Café, which will occupy the gateway Etna Road site just a few minutes’ walk from the town centre.
Wakemans Senior Associate Director Nigel Himpson said: “There has been an acknowledged shortage of accommodation in Bury St Edmunds in recent years so we are delighted to be supporting Travelodge as it builds its first hotel in the town.”
The former Tartan House office building has been demolished to make way for a new build, four-storey Travelodge hotel – which will be styled in the company’s new contemporary brand design. All rooms will feature a bespoke, luxurious king-size Travelodge Dreamer bed which sits within a mood lighting surrounded, with spacious bedside shelves for smart devices and USB charging points. All family rooms include two individual beds for the children.
Eighty parking spaces will be created across two car parks. A new, pedestrian bridge over the River Lark will link the hotel and a separate Starbucks drive-through coffee shop to parking to the north of the development. The area will also benefit from extensive landscaping with semi-mature trees.
Bury St Edmunds business leaders have welcomed Travelodge investing in the area, as they are keen to increase the number of visitors to the town and, in particular, to encourage tourists to stay overnight.
Tony O Brien, Travelodge Property Director, said: “We are delighted to be opening our first hotel in Bury St Edmunds. There is a desperate need for good quality and low accommodation within the area and our new hotel will certainly attract new visitors. This is great news for the local economy as our research shows our customers will spend £2million with local businesses during their stay with us.”
Travelodge expects to open 20 new hotels (over 1,900 rooms) across the UK in 2018, creating 550 new jobs and expanding its network to 578 Travelodge hotels in the UK, Spain and Ireland.
These hotels are being developed by third party investors, with an approximate equivalent investment value of £240 million and this includes the Bury St Edmunds Travelodge.
