High occupancy rates and strong customer demand will see Premier Inn’s Inverness operation expanding over the next few months with the addition of 54 new bedrooms across its Millburn and Inshes Gate sites.
At Inshes Gate, construction has started on a 23-room extension, due for completion early next year.
The neighbouring Nevis House, formerly a Fujitsu office building will be converted to add a further 22 bedrooms, expected to open next year.
Premier Inn Millburn is currently adding nine rooms to its offering, also due to open next year.
The expansion comes as both hotels experienced 100% occupancy this summer.
David Christmas, project and programme manager at Premier Inn, said: “We are seeing high occupancy rates at our Inverness hotels and there is strong demand from our customers looking to stay in the city on business trips and for leisure.
“We are keen to invest further into the city to offer more bedrooms in the best locations. Converting evis House into a 22-bedroom annexe to the hotel which – along with the 23 bedroom extension currently under construction – will bring Nevis House back into positive use and add a significant number of bedrooms to the Inverness East Premier Inn.”
The new rooms were yesterday granted the same licensed rights as the other rooms, ensuring that guests can drink alcohol in their rooms.
Highland Licensing Board member councillor Duncan Macpherson said Premier Inn’s Inverness expansion was a real success story for the local economy and travel industry.
He added: “As a licensing board it’s our job to encourage responsible drinking and that’s what we’ve done by making sure the new rooms have the same level of hospitality as the existing ones.”
Meanwhile Whitbread’s plans for what would be its most northerly Premier Inn in Thurso will go before Highland Council’s north planning committee on Tuesday November 27.
The plans have run a gauntlet of objections with concerns about flood risk, draining and water treatment, along with issues of transport and impact on the town centre.