About Macdonald Hotels & Resorts

Macdonald Hotels & Resorts is a major UK success story. Since our start up in 1990, our organisation has grown rapidly to become the operator of over 70 luxury hotels and with a collection of superb resorts in Scotland, England, Wales and Spain.

Financially sound, controlling a business with a turnover of more than £240 million a year, Macdonald Hotels & Resorts has established an enviable reputation for quality and service.

Some 30,000 owners currently enjoy the benefits of holiday ownership with the ability to choose from a range of resorts offering high standards of accommodation and an exciting variety of leisure activities.

Macdonald Hotels is one of the UK’s most successful hotel groups, operating over 70 hotels and resorts throughout the UK and Spain.

Since its inception in 1990, Macdonald Hotels has grown rapidly from an initial two hotels in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. Following the purchase of these two properties, Macdonald Hotels acquired eight more hotels in 1993 and a further four were added to the Macdonald Hotels portfolio in 1995.

The group was floated on the London Stock Exchange in October 1996 and has continued to grow, with further developments and expansion planned.

In parallel to the expansion of its portfolio, Macdonald Hotels has established an enviable reputation for quality and service.

Capitalising on extensive industry expertise Macdonald Hotels has developed different operational areas, and in this respect, the group varies significantly from most other hotel groups. Macdonald Hotels has, in addition to its ‘owned’ properties, consistently grown both its management contract and joint venture business.

In 1995 Macdonald Hotels assumed the management of six UK and four Spanish resorts owned by Barratt International Resorts Limited, one of the largest combined timeshare owner and operators in Europe.

Macdonald Hotels subsequently became a partner in Barratt Leisure Resorts in 1997, purchasing a 50% stake in the company. In April 2001, Macdonald Hotels purchased the remaining 50% of Barratt International Resorts at a cost of £8.5 million making it one of Europe's leading Vacation Ownership operators, with some 30,000 owners.

The group’s first new build joint venture, the Macdonald Holyrood Hotel, next to the site of the new Scottish Parliament, opened in November 1999. In November 2000, the Holyrood received the coveted AA Scottish Hotel of the Year award. Following this success, the Group are now looking to build and operate hotels in key city centre locations around the United Kingdom.

With the increasing importance of leisure and beauty, Macdonald Hotels launched its brand ‘Vital: Health, Fitness, Beauty’ in 2001.

Also in 2001, Macdonald Hotels again added to its portfolio, by forming a 50:50 joint venture with Bank of Scotland to purchase Heritage Hotels at a cost of £235 million. The addition of these 48 properties significantly strengthened Macdonald Hotels’ position in the UK market, making it one of the largest hotel operators in the UK. The 48 Heritage hotels were an ideal complement to Macdonald Hotels existing portfolio, strengthening the Group’s presence in the South of England and ensuring a UK-wide presence.

In December 2002, the group announced that they were to move ahead with a £30m re-development of Aviemore Highland Resort, in partnership with Bank of Scotland and Teesloch plc. Work has now begun on this project and the first phase of the development is scheduled to open in June 2004.

Macdonald Hotels recently opened its newest property at Cardrona in Peebles, in the Scottish Borders in May 2003 and looks forward to the future, by continuing to offer enviable quality and service across its portfolio to ensure its benchmark standards are maintained in the leisure industry.