• This coastal expansion programme would represent an investment of approximately £165 million for third party investors and would create around 650 new jobs
  • Travelodge celebrates its 20th anniversary of being beside the seaside and opens its 36th seaside resort hotel in Rhyl in partnership with the Local Authority - supporting local regeneration

Travelodge, the UK's first budget hotel brand celebrates 20 years of trading at UK seaside resorts this summer. The hotel chain opened its first seaside hotel in Brighton in 1999 and has opened its 36th seaside resort hotel at Rhyl beach.

To mark this 20 year milestone anniversary, Travelodge, who operates 584 hotels across the UK, Ireland and Spain - today announces it is looking to grow its coastal hotel network with a further 26 properties in seaside resorts and coastal towns in the British Isles. This programme will offer the growing leisure traveller market more choice, greater value coastal holiday destinations and support local coastal economies with their regeneration plans.

This coastal expansion programme of 26 hotels would represent a potential investment of £165 million for third party investors and would create around 650 new jobs.

The Travelodge coastal development target list stretches the length and breadth of the UK map and beyond. Starting from Lerwick, the capital of the Shetlands, going down and across to Pwllheli, in Wales, and then, down to Cornwall and beyond to Jersey and Guernsey. (See end of press release for the full list of 26 locations)

The group's latest seaside hotel opening, Rhyl Seafront Travelodge, is the town's first branded hotel to be located at the beach. It is also the company's ninth Local Authorities development partnership.

Denbighshire County Council recognised that a hotel could play a leading role in the regeneration of Rhyl and actively sought this innovative partnership with Travelodge to help boost its local economy. The hotel has been built on Denbighshire County Council-owned land and forms part of a wider, council-led £25m regeneration programme along the Rhyl seafront.

Our Local Authorities development programme uses bespoke agreements with unique funding structures, all of which have enabled Local Authorities to utilise their existing assets, create jobs, generate income, and help to regenerate land in strategically important locations.

Travelodge hotels in this programme are built on surplus local authority land, with the funding provided either through the Local Authorities internal resource or via low-cost funding from the Public Works Loan Board or third party resources.

Upon completion of the hotel development, local authorities have the choice of either retaining ownership of the hotel and receiving an annual rent into the Council's revenue budget or selling the hotel with Travelodge as its operator.

Rhyl Seafront Travelodge, a 69-sea view room hotel with on-site restaurant called the Bar Café and car-park represents an investment of £5 million for the landlord, Denbighshire County Council. The hotel has got off to a flying start, with room rates start from £29 and is set for a busy year ahead.

Tony O Brien, Travelodge UK Development Director said: "We are seeing the rebirth of British seaside resorts and coastal towns as a result of Britons changing holiday habits. We are becoming a strong Staycation nation that likes to take lots of short breaks throughout the year rather than a traditional two week block holiday. To support this growing trend, we are looking to enter new markets and extend our network of coastal location hotels so that we can offer more choice and greater value to the modern leisure traveller."

Tony continued: "There are significant regeneration and modernisation projects taking place in seaside towns and cities across the UK, and we have identified 26 coastal areas that could benefit from a Travelodge hotel. We will kick start our expansion programme by writing to the Local Authority in each region to see if we can play a pivotal role in their regeneration programme like we have done in Rhyl. Investing in a low-cost hotel like Travelodge is an increasingly attractive choice, as it draws visitors, creates jobs and helps boost the local economy."

"This expansion programme would represent an investment of £165 million for third party investors and create around 650 new jobs. It would also support local economies as research shows on average our customers spend double their room rate with local businesses which annually results in a multimillion boost for the local economy."

The list below details the 26 seaside resort and coastal towns where Travelodge is looking to open a hotel:

  1. Aberystwyth
  2. Bognor Regis
  3. Bournemouth
  4. Bude
  5. Canterbury / Whistable
  6. Deal / Sandwich
  7. Eastbourne
  8. Falmouth
  9. Folkestone
  10. Guernsey
  11. Hove
  12. Jersey
  13. Lerwick
  14. Looe / Fowey
  15. Lowestoft
  16. Newquay
  17. Oban
  18. Penarth
  19. Penzance
  20. Pwllheli
  21. Shoreham-by-Sea
  22. St Ives
  23. Tenby
  24. Truro
  25. Western Super Mare
  26. Weymouth

This year, is set to be the strongest year for holidaying at home, according to the Travelodge 2019 Holiday Index. This summer, 69% of us are taking their annual summer holiday in the UK - this is an increase of 12% (57%) from 2018 with the average holiday being a week. Also Britons are spending more on their summer break this year with an average spend of £874. This is the highest spend since Travelodge started its annual holiday index in 2011 when the average spend was £399.28. Collectively Britons will boost the UK economy by £40 billion this year by holidaying on British shores this summer.

The report also revealed that over half of Britons at 58% have opted to holiday at home due to Brexit uncertainties and are showing their solidarity by supporting UK tourism and their economy.

Findings also revealed a growing trend in more Britons seeking value from their holiday time. In 2019, 45% of British holidaymakers (A five percent increase from 2018) are taking a three location Summercation. This includes a beach, rural and city stopover as part of their week's holiday. This is a cost-effective way of creating three holidays for the price of one and also provides great content for social media news feeds.

Research also shows it's the death of the traditional two week holiday as 85% of Britons are splitting the traditional two-week annual holiday into a seven-day block supported with three short breaks throughout the year. A traditional jaunt to the seaside remains a firm favorite with 45% of Britons flocking to the coast this summer. For the fifth consecutive year, Cornwall keeps its crown as the nation's top holiday destination. In second place is Blackpool rising up the ranks from 15th position in 2018. Devon has slipped down to third position after previously holding the number two slot for several years.

About Travelodge

Founded in 1985, Travelodge is Britain's very first budget hotel chain and today is one of the largest budget hotel chains in the UK, with a portfolio of nearly 600 hotels and over 46,000 bedrooms across the UK, Ireland and Spain.

Welcoming over 22 million guests annually, the majority of Travelodge hotels are located in major cities, towns and holiday hotspots as well as by airports and key business hubs. With 90% of its hotels rated 4* or above on TripAdvisor, Travelodge is proud to offer a diverse customer base a good value experience – whether travelling for business or leisure. In 2023 approximately 50% of rooms were sold for less than £60.

In 2004, Travelodge was the first UK budget hotel brand to launch in Spain when it opened its first hotel in Madrid, closely followed by its first in Barcelona. Over the following years three further hotels were opened in Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia. In October last year the sixth hotel in Spain was opened – Madrid Coslada Aeropuerto Travelodge.

Our Spanish Travelodge hotels are a great base for both business and leisure guests, offering a wide range of room types, a breakfast, lunch and dinner menu at affordable prices as well as Wifi for all guests. All hotels are also pet-friendly.

For further information visit travelodge.co.uk or the Travelodge Hotels Limited LinkedIn page.

The Travelodge Press Office
+44 1844 35 8703
Travelodge