Budget hotels group Travelodge exploited the crash in commercial land values to splash out £84 million on six properties in London, putting it in pole position to be the capital's biggest hotels chain when the 2012 Olympics kick off.
The chain is set to create 200 new jobs when it opens the additions to its estate, which are in Covent Garden's Drury Lane, Ealing, Stratford, Bromley and two in Harrow. By the time they are completed, Travelodge, Britain's second-biggest budget hotels operator after Whitbread's Premier Inn, will be the market leader with 6482 rooms spread across 45 hotels in the capital.
The firm's expansion comes at a time when the insolvencies in the UK hotel industry have soared, up 120% since last June. The first half of this year has seen 21 hotel groups collapsing.
Travelodge's chief executive, Grant Hearn, said the firm wants to cash in as tourists flock to London for the Olympics. "We have long stated our aim of being the lead brand in London by the time of the Games. It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the tourism industry and we intend to take it with both hands."
