The £5million first phase began with the Holiday Inn Bristol Filton, who unveiled their new Open Lobby in July, closely followed by the Holiday Inn Glasgow Airport, the Holiday Inn Cambridge, the Holiday Inn Edinburgh and most recently the Holiday Inn London Regent’s Park who showcased their swish new Open Lobby in December.
The Open Lobbies have been met with rave reviews from guests, partners, staff and visiting press. Journalist Rachel McAlley for H&N Magazine described the ‘fresh and new’ Holiday Inn Glasgow Airport Open Lobby as a ‘really comfortable lounge space with bright art.. the perfect place to hang out, relax and people watch.” Similarly Travel Writer Iwan Davies found the new Holiday Inn Bristol Filton Open Lobby experience to be “fantastic and impressive” with a “first-class service.”
The Open Lobby concept will continue to be rolled out across the LGH Hotels Management Ltd portfolio to further improve and upgrade the guest experience and to better accommodate the needs of contemporary business and leisure guests. The second phase of the large-scale roll out has already begun with works now complete at the Holiday Inn Oxford, to be officially unveiled soon, and works due to finish this month at the Holiday Inn Maidenhead/Windsor. Open Lobby refurbishments have also now begun at the Holiday Inn Basildon, the Holiday Inn Cardiff City Centre and the Holiday Inn Guildford.
The Open Lobby concept has been designed to provide guests with one multi-faceted public space to eat, meet, relax, socialise and work as they choose. The traditionally separate zones of a reception, lounge, bar and restaurant are merged into one stylish and cohesive ‘Open Lobby’ space where guests can operate in a more instinctive, relaxed and homely way.
Key features of the Open Lobby include free Wi-Fi, a ‘To Go’ Café where food and drinks are available 24/7, versatile dining spaces with everything from booths to high and low seating, a living-room style Media Lounge with comfy seating, games, magazines and TV and an E-Bar where guests can plug-in with lots of power points, a wireless printer and more.
Simon Teasdale, Chief Executive Officer for LGH Hotels Management Ltd, commented: “This Open Lobby roll out has been a huge success and well received by all so far. We’ve worked really hard in every location to make sure we utilise the space and facilities in the best way possible, with our guests in mind at every point, to ensure a slick and smooth experience from start to finish. Upgrading and improving our service is a top priority to continue to offer the best quality and value in our market. We’re looking forward to the second Open Lobby roll out across the rest of our Holiday Inn portfolio in 2022 and beyond.”
