Whitbread set to open third Premier Inn at Edinburgh Airport

Whitbread has agreed a deal with development partner Riverstone Hotels for a new Premier Inn hotel at Edinburgh Airport. The hotel will be a new-build on a greenfield site on Eastfield Road and will be owned by Riverstone Hotels, which has signed a 25-year lease with Whitbread. Whitbread and Riverstone Hotels are consulting on plans for the five-storey, 200-bedroom hotel as they prepare to submit a planning application to City of Edinburgh Council early next year. Whitbread’s portfolio already includes two Premier Inns at Edinburgh Airport: Premier Inn Edinburgh Airport (M9, Jct1), three miles from the airport, and Premier Inn Edinburgh Park (Airport), four miles from the airport. The announcement adds to a growing pipeline of sites, including a £200m hotel with 693 bedrooms near Trafalgar Square. Additionally, in September, Whitbread signed a deal with MIX Manchester to operate a 276-bedroom Premier Inn just 400m from Manchester Airport’s terminals, making it the largest Premier Inn in the North. Jill Anderson, acquisitions manager for Whitbread, said: “The investment case for expanding Premier Inn at Edinburgh Airport is compelling. We have recognised an opportunity to expand our network in the catchment and bring the popular Premier Inn brand to within walking distance of the airport terminal building.” John Rumsey, development director at Riverstone Developments, said: “The Premier Inn brand is instantly recognisable to travellers, and Whitbread’s long track record and consistently strong financial performance gave us the reassurance to commit to a leasehold development with them. “As a team, we have everything in place to start building the new hotel next year, should we get planning.” See planning decisions in Edinburgh >> Photo © Shutterstock