Budget hotel chain Travelodge has announced an ambitious plan for expansion in Spain. With some 600 establishments in the United Kingdom and Ireland, the company has just opened its sixth hotel in Spain, a country it has identified as a key growth market.

The inauguration of the Coslada Aeropuerto hotel was the event they chose to announce the project. After signing a 20-year lease, the company has invested one million euros in refurbishing the hotel and adapting its 78 rooms to reflect the brand's image. With three hotels in Madrid, two in Barcelona and one in Valencia, the British firm is already looking for new establishments in Valencia, Alicante and Benidorm.

Strategic expansion report
In view of the opportunities identified in Spain, Travelodge worked with the real estate consultancy Christie & Co to prepare a strategic expansion report. One of its main conclusions is that there is a shortage of budget hotels in Spain, even though the country is one of the world's leading leisure and business destinations.

According to the study, economy and midscale rooms represent only 33% of the total supply. A low figure when compared with markets such as France, where it stands at 59%, the UK (41%) and, on the other side of the Atlantic, the US (44%). The figure for Spain drops  to 6% if you only include hotel rooms belonging to the economy and midscale branded segment.

Growth forecast
As well as analysing the current situation, the report predicts future growth. It specifically estimates that the market could accommodate an additional 15,000 rooms in hotels specialising in value-for-money over the next five years. This growth would arise from a combination of new developments and the conversion of existing hotels.

With market trends aligning perfectly with its expansion plans, Travelodge has delved deeper into the report, identifying the 20 cities with the greatest potential for growth in its segment. Among those cities where the company expects to see an increase in the number of business and leisure visitors are the three in which it already has a presence and intends to expand its hotel network.

New locations
The next locations have been divided into two groups, depending on the company's own interest in targeting them. The first group of key locations includes Alicante, Bilbao, Cádiz, Málaga, Palma de Mallorca, San Sebastián and Seville. The second group, classified as secondary locations, comprises Benidorm, Córdoba, Gerona, Granada, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Santiago de Compostela, Santander, Tarragona, Valladolid and Zaragoza.

According to the general manager for Travelodge Spain, Ángel Beleño, “Spain is the fourth most visited country in the world and its tourism sector is now a major driver of the economy. This is creating new opportunities in the Spanish hotel market, especially for the midscale and economy hotel sector, and we want to take this opportunity to bring the Travelodge brand to new business and leisure locations all over Spain.”

^{Photo: Travelodge}