Leicester hotels Novotel and Adagio and independent restaurant NineB, managed by Interstate Hotels & Resorts, open their doors today (16 January 2020) following a vote of confidence in the future of the city from Leicester-based property developers Charles Street Buildings Group.

The £50 million regeneration of the wider Great Central Square development area, for which planning began in 2013, comes off the back of the owner’s firm belief that Leicester is worth significant investment as a tourist destination. Designed to attract more visitors to the city, the development will also provide high-quality leisure space for its residents.

James Conaghan, general manager of the hotels, said: “These are exciting times for the city of Leicester. Its reputation as a national tourist destination is growing, which is creating a clear demand for more hotel rooms and eateries to cater for the influx of visitors, tourists and businesses.

“We’re all thrilled with this development, and we hope the city and its residents will feel a sense of pride too.”

City Mayor Peter Soulsby said: “The investment from Novotel and Adagio is a ringing endorsement of Leicester as a place that is continuing to grow as a visitor destination, with record numbers of people choosing to spend time in our city.

“We have built on the momentum generated by the King Richard III story and Leicester City’s amazing Premier League win and as a result, visitor numbers are growing year on year.

“According to recent tourism figures, over 11 million people visited Leicester last year and, after six years of continued growth, tourism was worth more than £650 million to the local economy*.

“These new, high quality hotels show that there is already a strong interest in Leicester as a destination and will help strengthen our ambitious tourism action plan.

“It is clear to see that while a few years ago nobody deemed Leicester an attraction, people are now coming for business as well as pleasure and they want to stay.”

Augmented hospitality company, Accor, has named the development one of Europe’s flagship dual sites and one of Europe’s flagship Novotel hotels, a testament to the international brand’s confidence in positioning Leicester as a top tourist destination.

James added: “This is not just another Novotel or Adagio hotel – the investment that has gone into the design and all of the extra details really show how much the owners want to bring something particularly unique to Leicester. The results are stunning and instil a certain confidence and trust in the future of the city. The hard work from everyone involved has really paid off.”