We start as usual with an update of London-based hotels before moving north. We finish this brief update with news from some of the major conference and events venues in the UK
News from London:
Six Senses London, the first UK site for IHG’s luxury Six Senses brand will open in March with 109 bedrooms and suites and 14 branded residences within what was once The Whiteley London department store in Bayswater. The hotel will feature an all-day dining restaurant with an open kitchen plus a courtyard. It will also feature 3,500 square feet of fitness space with a 20-metre indoor swimming pool, a ‘wellness club, as well as coworking spaces.
The Newman Hotel is expected to open this summer – located in Newman Street in Fitzrovia In central London. It will have 81 bedrooms and suites, a brasserie restaurant and bar, a spa and two meeting and events suites. We will advise actual opening date when it is published.
Australian-based budget hotel group LyLo is planning a launch of its pod hotel concept in London. Details of when and where in London await publication but the LyLo concept offers hostel-style accommodation with onsite co-working, social and wellness spaces, especially for younger, budget-conscious traveller. We will monitor developments.
Plans to convert a hundred-year-old former school building in Penn, Buckinghamshire into a luxury hotel have been approved. The Grade-II listed Penn School will become the Rayners Penn Hotel, with 33 bedrooms and suites, a meeting room, cinema, wine room, fine dining restaurant, cookery school and a wellness spa. Further details to follow in due course.
The Crowne Plaza Reading closed at the end of the year. It will now undergo an extensive refurbishment before reopening as a Village Hotel Club. The 33-strong hotel and leisure club operator acquired the site at Caversham Bridge last year.
The 5-star Hotel Gotham opens in Bristol in autumn 2025. It will be housed in the Guildhall on Small Street – a building which has been closed since 2010. Hotel Gotham will have 75 bedrooms and suites, a spa and a rooftop terrace bar. Details of meeting and events facilities to follow in due course.
The Treehouse Manchester is one of the most eagerly awaited new hotel openings of the year. Expected to open in early 2025, The Treehouse Manchester will be located on Deansgate in the city centre with 224 bedrooms and suites, two restaurants as well as a panoramic rooftop bar, meeting and events facilities for up to 400 guests including a private screening room. We will advise the opening date when it is published but bear in mind the original opening date was scheduled for 2022 and it has been moved back ever since.
News and developments from major UK conference venues
A new conference centre is currently under construction as part of Olympia’s £1.3 billion redevelopment in central London. Set to open in late spring 2026, the conference centre will include an 850-seated capacity auditorium, eight breakout rooms, a boardroom, business lounge and a private hire bar and restaurant. The 3,000 sq-mt of space is designed for a variety of events from theatre-style conferences to award ceremonies. It will also be connected to the existing four exhibition spaces for larger event configurations. It will have its own dedicated entrance on Hammersmith Road.
The Belfry Hotel & Resort Sutton Coldfield. Developments include the new Masters Suite (852 sqm), which can host up to 920 delegates with views across the Brabazon golf course plus 149 new bedrooms. It is expected to open autumn 2025. Existing facilities include 319 bedrooms and suites, 2 restaurants and bars, 22 conference and events suites, a leisure club and spa plus a PGA golf academy.
The Sage Arena and International Conference Centre (ICC) is a new development on the banks of the River Tyne in Gateshead. It will include: a 12,500-capacity arena, 5,720 square metres of exhibition space, 17 conference rooms and a banqueting suite. It is scheduled to open autumn 2025.
In our brief roundup of major conference and events venues we have included Marine Lake Events Centre (MLEC) on Merseyside although it is not scheduled to open before 2026. The Events Centre replaces the former Southport Theatre and Convention Centre. It will include a 1,200-seat theatre, a 2,400-capacity conference and exhibition space, plus smaller meeting rooms a café and restaurant. More details to follow in due course.
Also, on Merseyside Everton Football Club’s new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock in Liverpool is expected to open at the start of the 2025/26 football season in late summer this year. It will have a 52,888-seat capacity and will be available for concerts, large events and conferences – as well as the occasional football match. Details of the spaces available and their capacities await publication.
