LONDON—IHG is set to debut locations for its boutique brand Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants and the recently launched upscale brand, Voco Hotels in the United Kingdom. This move follows the announcement made in May of an agreement with Covivio (formerly Foncière des Régions), to rebrand and operate 12 open hotels in the U.K. and one pipeline hotel. Nine of the hotels join IHG’s brand portfolio, with the remaining three open hotels anticipated to be added in the coming weeks.
Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants
IHG will debut the luxury boutique brand in London; Manchester, England; and Edinburgh and Glasgow in Scotland. The Kimpton hotels will each be in U.K. city center locations:
- London’s literary neighborhood, Bloomsbury, will become home to the capital’s first Kimpton Hotel later this year. Located in Russell Square, the building and currently The Principal London, originally opened in 1898.
- Manchester is set to open its first Kimpton Hotel in 2019. Currently The Principal Manchester, the hotel occupies the corners of Oxford St. and Whitworth St., across three buildings dating back to the turn of the last century.
- The Principal Edinburgh Charlotte Square, originally built in 1791, overlooks one of the city’s garden squares and is set to become a Kimpton Hotel next year.
- In Glasgow, Scotland, The Principal Blythswood Square Hotel, home of the former Royal Scottish Automobile Association, will operate under the Kimpton brand in 2019.
This marks a milestone in IHG’s plans to take the Kimpton brand global. It follows the signing of the first Kimpton in Japan, in Tokyo’s Shinjuku district, last week, as well as the signing of three properties in markets in Southeast Asia and Greater China last year. It also adds to Kimpton’s expansion in Europe, with the opening of Kimpton De Witt Amsterdam in 2017, the signing of Kimpton Paris, due to open in 2020, and Kimpton Frankfurt, due to open in 2023.
Voco Hotels
Voco Hotels will be making its U.K. debut in Cardiff, Wales. Overlooking Cardiff Bay, The Principal St. David’s Hotel will take on the Voco brand later this year. It is expected that further Voco hotels will be coming to the U.K. soon.
InterContinental returns to Edinburgh, Scotland
The historic Principal Edinburgh George St. will be rebranded as an InterContinental by late next year.
Hotel Indigo
Hotel Indigo will debut in Leeds, England, in 2020. Every aspect of the property, currently the Principal Met Leeds Hotels, will be inspired by stories of the local area, from design to local ingredients in its menus.
The Principal York will be rebranded at a later stage, and the De Vere Wotton House hotel, near Dorking Surrey, will be operating unbranded as Wotton House.
The Principal Grand Central Hotel in Glasgow, Scotland; De Vere Oxford Thames; and The Principal Oxford Spires Hotel are expected to join IHG’s portfolio in Q3, 2018.
