Sale of Cumbria’s Castle Green Hotel

The specialist hotels team at real estate advisors Colliers International, acting on behalf of Castle Green Hotel Limited, has concluded the sale of the four star Castle Green Hotel in Kendal, to global investors Frank Truman Limited.

The deal, for an undisclosed sum, was brokered by Julian Troup, head of UK hotels agency at Colliers, who described the transaction as “the largest and most valuable individual hotel sale that has ever taken place in Cumbria.”

Keith Melling and Kate Mallaband, of Napthens Solicitors, advised the selling shareholders.

John Deane, of Gannons Solicitors, and Peter Klim, of BLM Solicitors, advised the buyer.

The business will now be operated by Legacy Hotels & Resorts, one of the UK’s leading, privately-owned, hotel management companies with a portfolio of approximately 2,800 trading and pipeline guestrooms across the UK and Southern Spain.

The sale reflected unprecedented demand for quality hotel accommodation from both overseas and domestic buyers, thanks to factors including the weakness of sterling, positive returns on investment offered by the sector, investors seeking alternatives to other types of real estate and the Lake District’s recently acquired status as a UNESCO world heritage site.

Located in Kendal, the ‘gateway to the Lakes’, Castle Green is one of the leading, independently-owned four-star hotels in the North West of England.

Set in 14 acres of landscaped gardens and woodland, Castle Green offers 99 luxury bedrooms, a high-quality bar, lounge and Greenhouse restaurant, two substantial function suites, a business and training centre, the Pulse fitness club and Green Rooms spa and in a separate building, Alexanders restaurant.

The managing director of Castle Green Hotel Limited is Tim Rumney, also the chairman of Interchange & Consort Hotels which operates the Best Western brand in Great Britain.

Tim said: “After 20 years of owning and operating The Castle Green Hotel in Kendal the shareholders have decided to retire or pursue other business interests.

“We would like to thank the hotel team for their commitment and the local community for their support over that time and for helping us create a very special hotel.”

The shareholders retain their ownership interest in the Pinewood Hotel in Wilmslow, which they acquired in 2011.

Julian said: “As a leading independently-owned hotel in the North West, Castle Green boasts outstanding facilities and represents an ideal and strategic addition to the buyer’s growing portfolio of select UK hotels.

“Having marketed the hotel confidentially with an instruction to seek substantial offers, we attracted UK and international interest reflecting unprecedented levels of interest from investors in the acquisition of such quality hotel accommodation in prime locations.”

Julian added that the Lake District/Cumbria continues to be Colliers’ most productive UK region for hospitality transactions – with more than 30 hotel and hospitality businesses in the region sold in the past two years.

Commenting on the deal, Andy Townsend, chief executive of Legacy Hotels & Resorts, said: “We are delighted to welcome Ben Mayou, the hotel’s general manager and the Castle Green team to our portfolio of hotels.

“We acknowledge the investment that has been made in the business over recent years and we are pleased to now have the opportunity to take the hotel forward on the next phase of its development journey.

“The hotel joins us at a very exciting time for the group with new openings and development projects coming online over the next few months.”