PORTAL HITS A HOLE IN ONE FOR THE CONFERENCE MARKET

February 21st 2007

Macdonald Hotels & Resorts has joined forces with Arderne Plc to transform a prestigious golf venue in Cheshire into the county's premier destination with the forthcoming completion of the £11.8 million Macdonald Portal Hotel, Golf and Spa.

Scheduled to open in July 2007, the new build programme will offer 85 luxury en-suite bedrooms - many offer uninterrupted views of the stunning Cheshire countryside - a bar, 120 cover restaurant offering contemporary cuisine, and a state-of-the-art thermal spa complete with a pool and gym facilities.

Extensive banqueting and conference facilities for up to 400 people, offering comfort cooling and equipped with LCD screen-to-laptop systems and projectors, WiFi and broadband connections will also be created alongside a flexible meeting space that can be split into six break-out rooms.

The Portal Golf Club complex already features three highly regarded championship golf courses and the largest indoor golf academy in Europe. The Clubhouse is also being refurbished to provide an unique exclusive members' area as well as visitor's areas and private dining facilities.

Regional manager Calum Colquhoun is confident the state-of-the-art facilities will raise the standards of conferencing and banqueting in the region and could even attract visitors to the county for the first time.
"The investment by both Macdonald Hotels and Resorts and Arderne Plc will undoubtedly raise the barometer of facilities provided for conferences, banquets, meetings and weddings in Cheshire, and will be an excellent addition to Macdonald's existing portfolio of premium four and five star properties across the UK, " he said.

"Every aspect of this development has been designed to offer guests the very best in terms of comfort, style and ultra modern amenities, and we are confident both business and leisure guests will be impressed, whether they are visiting for a conference, meeting or a golfing break.

"The accommodation has been built to a superior quality four-star standard and the partners are determined to build on Portal's existing reputation for providing first-class facilities and customer service."

Contractors Watkin Jones were appointed to build the property, and are on schedule to complete the project within a 30 week timescale. It is expected that the introduction of the hotel and spa will create approximately 100 jobs.

Michael Taylor, Chairman of Arderne Plc, joint owners with Macdonald Hotels of the Portal development said,

"This is an exciting time for us and we are looking forward to further contributing to the thriving business community of Cheshire. Centred between the major cities of Manchester, Liverpool and Chester, our location provides ideal access from the main motorway networks from all over country. We are expecting the new development will attract a greater emphasis of commercial business to the hotel and its range of ancillary facilities."

The hotel will be closely followed by the much anticipated opening of the company's new £33 million hotel in Manchester city centre in October 2007.

Back to Press Articles