By Scott Wright
MACDONALD Hotels & Resorts is gearing up to have all of its properties in Scotland up and running over the festive period, as a survey carried out by the group signalled that an overwhelming majority of consumers feel safe about visiting hospitality venues.
The company, which has 10 hotels in Scotland, is preparing to ensure all of its destinations north of the Border will be ready to welcome guests in the build-up to Christmas.
The commitment was made ahead of changes to Scotland’s lockdown system expected to be announced by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon today. It is anticipated that huge parts of west and central Scotland, an area covering around three million citizens, will be moved from tier four into tier three from Friday, paving the way for hospitality and non-essential retail outlets to reopen.
Macdonald, which appointed former Jamie’s Italian executive Tara O’Neill as its new boss last week, said hotels that are currently in tier four were being readied to reopen. Three hotels, Macdonald Houstoun House, the Crutherland in East Kilbride and Forest Hills in Aberfoyle, were closed on November 20, in line with Government restrictions. Houstoun House and the Crutherland are due to open on December 11, with Forest Hills following one week later.
The preparations to reopen came as a questionnaire of nearly 8,800 people carried out directly by Macdonald found that 83 per cent said they felt comfortable about visiting hotels, restaurants or bars over the festive period.
Macdonald noted that while Covid restrictions will continue to apply to hotels in tiers two and three, those limitations will be relaxed between December 23 and 27, under temporary rules to allow people to spend time with family and friends over Christmas. It means that groups of up to six people from two different households will be able to meet in restaurant or bar settings within hotels, depending om which tier the property falls into. Travel restrictions will also be lifted for the period, giving people the chance book short holiday stays in hotels.
JP Murphy, group head of marketing at Macdonald, said: “It is enormously encouraging that people recognise the wide range of steps being taken by us to keep them safe. All our hotels are operating to the highest standard of health and safety and our staff are focused on doing their usual incredible job of looking after our guests.
“While, unfortunately, we’re expecting fewer guests than normal over the festive season, we have created a fantastic festive offering to bring back some much-needed joy and normality to people’s lives. We are already seeing a marked upturn in bookings from people keen to see family and friends in a relaxed, fun environment that will keep them safe.
We know from our own research that people want to enjoy time away from their homes, whether for a festive day out or an extended overnight stay.”
Macdonald operates a Safe & Sound strategy, which details steps it has taken to help keep guests safe during the pandemic.
Earlier this year, the company made 517 redundancies at its 30 hotels and five resorts across Scotland and England following a sharp downturn in trade arising the pandemic.
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