Colchester Needs Four New Hotels
COLCHESTER needs four new hotels if it is to capitalise on unprecedented opportunities in tourism development an official study says.The study, commissioned by Colchester Borough Council in January this year, was carried out by leading leisure industry specialist, Humberts Leisure.
The report, which has yet to be officially endorsed by the Council, outlines the current demand and supply of hotel accommodation in and around Colchester. It assesses current trends and takes a view on the various tourism developments taking place in order to gauge the potential around Colchester for further hotel development.
The Humberts report identifies a need for further accommodation capacity in Colchester over the next few years, specifically: . An immediate opportunity for a boutique hotel of 20-40 rooms, upper 3 / 4 star, in the town centre . An immediate opportunity for a branded budget, 3 star hotel of 50-100 rooms, edge of town centre, close to arterial routes with easy access to town centre . Medium term opportunity (2008-10) for a large nationally branded upper 3 / 4 star hotel of 150 rooms with conferencing facilities, out of town centre . Longer term opportunity (2010-15) for a large branded 3 / 4 star hotel, out of town centre with easy access to A12
Accommodation capacity is highlighted in the Council's Destination Development Plan 2006-09 as one of five key issues which need to be addressed if Colchester is to realise its potential as a prestigious regional centre and take its rightful place on the regional and national tourism stage.
Commenting on the findings, Karen Turnbull, the Council's Tourism & Visitor Development Officer, said: "This is excellent news. The Council's tourism team had felt a need for increased accommodation capacity in and around Colchester for some years and it is good to have this confirmed by an official study into the availability of hotel accommodation locally. It will prove invaluable to developers looking to invest in hotel construction and refurbishment as well as the Council's Planners when receiving applications for new developments."
"Increasing accommodation capacity in Colchester is vital if we are to encourage more short breaks here". added Karen. "Developments like the new Firstsite cultural attraction, the Cultural Quarter, the Community Stadium, new shops in the St Botolph's area and 17,000 new households will generate an estimated additional 500,000 visitor trips a year. Currently most of our visitors are daytrippers. We need to do two things: encourage those daytrippers to return here and stay over night and also encourage more people than ever before to visit Colchester on a short break.
"More hotels will also be attractive to the coach tourism market and conference and events organisers. It is vital to increase capacity if Colchester is to grow its share of the regional tourism market and increase tourism's contribution to the local economy in terms of visitor spending and new tourism jobs."
The report found that hotel occupancy in Colchester is currently at 72%; 2% above the industry standard. This means that there is an immediate need to increase capacity as Humberts found that many hotels are turning business away in terms of the number of bed-nights, conferences, weddings and banquets.
Confidence in the development of the tourism industry in and around Colchester is high. Colchester has seen significant private and public sector investment over recent years. Colchester Zoo has invested more than £15m in improving the visitor experience and habitat for the animals and is now one of the region's leading visitor attractions.
Similarly, an ambitious re-display programme is planned for the Castle Museum during 2008 which will make the Castle an even better place to visit.
Shopping is also a very popular attraction for Colchester and Williams & Griffin's recent modernisation programme is making the shopping experience there more attractive.
In addition Colchester is likely to benefit if Stansted Airport is expanded and also from the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games as the town is currently bidding to host 2012 training camp.
The Council's Portfolio Holder for Culture & Enviroment, Councillor Christopher Arnold, added: "Colchester is on the cusp of something great. There are few destinations, especially in the East of England Region, which can claim to have such tourism potential. The Council's commitment to encouraging developers to bring more accommodation to the area demonstrates our ambition and intention to sustain and grow visitor activity, to retain our current visitor base and capitalise on the Colchester area's potential, especially in relation to the 2012 Olympics and realise our ambition to be a prestigious regional centre." ENDS July 07