UK: Knight Frank, a global property consultancy, has been selected to manage the sale of The Red Lion Hotel at Whittlesford Bridge in Cambridge.
The Red Lion Hotel is a Grade II-listed, 18-room hotel located eight miles from Cambridge City Centre. The property includes a glass atrium with seating for 200 and a private dining room.
The hotel can be purchased solo or in combination with the 73-suite Holiday Inn Express, Cambridge Duxford, which is also for sale by Knight Frank. The Holiday Inn Express, which is currently in a franchise agreement with IHG and a management agreement with Interstate that can both be terminated on sale, also contains 91 car park spaces and a restaurant. The hotels are situated next door to one another in Cambridge.
Due to the influence of Cambridge University, which brings in millions of visitors each year, the city has a strong focus on science and technology, leading many science and technology businesses to locate their offices in Cambridge.
The hotels are in close proximity to The South Cambridge Business and Technology Cluster, which houses a variety of businesses including Astra Zeneca, AXA, Sanofi, International Flavours and Fragrances, The Welding Institute (TWI), IBM, Imperial Innovations, Scienta, TTP, PA Consulting, Ziconix, Tone Jet, Aegate, Instem, and Strainstall UK Ltd. The business centre also includes the headquarters of the world’s largest medical research charity, The Wellcome Trust, Addenbrookes Hospital, and the Laboratory of Molecular Biology.
St John’s Innovation Park and The Works, both located in Cambridge, have also undergone recent renovation to attract businesspeople, which is expected to draw demand for the hotels.
Additionally, nearby Whittlesford Parkway Station will undergo renovations to increase its connectivity and capacity.
Head of hotel agency in the hotels team at Knight Frank, Henry Jackson, said: “The hotels are situated in the heart of Cambridge’s expanding life science and bio tech parks, and it is rare for prime Cambridge hotel opportunities to come to the open market. Indeed, it is the first time the Red Lion Hotel has been on the market in 41 years. The combined offering of an established branded hotel and a popular former coaching inn provides an incoming investor with a variety of revenue streams and guest options. There is also an interesting value add play with the possibility of either additional hotel bedrooms, or potential for a retail and a residential development subject to the necessary consents.”
In the last few months, Knight Frank conducted the sale England’s oldest hotel, and is currently working the sale of Avisford Park.
