This will be followed in the middle of next year by a 130-bedroom Express by Holiday Inn in Newcastle city centre, for £8m.The announcement follows openings in Newport and Bedford and the opening of Ramada Encore hotels in west London and Swansea Bay.
BDL also operates a number of Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza hotels under franchise agreements, and is set to have some 17 hotels under its wing by the end of this year.