New generation hotel ‘hub by Premier Inn’ is the first in Scotland
Premier Inn strengthens its commitment in Scotland with an investment of £35m in three new hotels in Edinburgh, including the first hub by Premier Inn outside of London and ongoing refurbishments and extensions, bringing 150 jobs and 10 apprenticeships to the city.
Around half of the full and part-time, year-round positions across the three new hotels have gone to those between the ages of 16-24 and long-term unemployed, with roles ranging from receptionists and restaurant team to housekeeping and maintenance roles.
Two of the hotels, located in the Old Town off the Royal Mile on New Market Street, will open at the end of this month, including the first hub in Scotland with 121-bedrooms, and adjacent, a 127-bedroom Premier Inn. Scheduled to open in late Spring will be a 127-bedroom Premier Inn hotel in the New Town in York Place taking the total number of hotels in the city to 14, with over 1500 rooms.
hub, which is the only hotel in the world that allows guests to control their room settings using an Apple Watch, is a new generation of compact, city centre hotels where smart technology meets stylish design. Customers can use an app on Android, iPhone or Apple Watch to book, check-in, customise their room or even control their Smart TV’s. The modern, contemporary rooms, which have stunning views of the city and the Firth of Forth, are meticulously designed to utilise every space, whilst creating a calm haven in the heart of the bustling city.
Simon Ewins, Chief Operating Officer for Premier Inn and hub, said: “We are absolutely delighted to be opening three new fantastic hotels in Edinburgh and it is great that we are able to bring so many jobs and apprenticeships to the city. hub is a new concept for us which we are really excited about, especially as this is the first one in Scotland and outside of London. We are confident our guests visiting the beautiful city of Edinburgh will enjoy this new digital experience and we will look to open more in Scotland in the future.”
The Premier Inn hotels at Royal Mile and York Place also boast stunning views of the city and feature a Thyme restaurant. All bedrooms will showcase the company’s latest high-spec, modern design and feature a 40″ flat screen TV and a luxury king-size Hypnos bed.
Additional investment by Premier Inn in the city includes a £1.8m extension at Premier Inn Newcraighall and a £1.2m refurbishment at Edinburgh Central, which follows on from the recent successful opening of the £7m hotel in St Andrews in October 2015. This will take the number of hotels in Scotland to 68, which is part of Premier Inn’s expansion plan that will see the company extend its current number of bedrooms UK-wide to 85,000 by 2020.
Manuela Calchini, Regional Director at VisitScotland, said: “From the bustling splendour of the Royal Mile to the grace of the Georgian New Town, Edinburgh remains a must-see destination for visitors to Scotland and these new hotels will be an exciting and welcome addition to the city’s strong line-up of high quality accommodation providers. It is also appropriate that our digital savvy visitors will be able to experience the first hub by Premier Inn outside of London in our beautiful capital, during Scotland’s Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design.”
Clive Wilding, Project Director for New Waverley said: “The opening of the two hotels at New Waverley marks an exciting turning point for the regeneration of this historic part of Edinburgh’s Old Town.
“It’s been a great working partnership with Whitbread, and together we are at last breathing new life into what has been a neglected part of Edinburgh’s historic city centre. The new hotels are already in good company – just along the street lie the Waverley Arches, a vibrant and completely different retail and leisure quarter which is already creating a real buzz around the city.
“The new hotels will contribute to this exciting mix at New Waverley which is continuing to attract more people back to the area, whether to live, work or visit.”