Travelodge, the UK's fastest growing hotel chain, has today announced the exchange of 10 new hotels at a combined investment value of £47 million.

(TRAVPR.COM) Thame, UK - 17th November, 2009 - The investment gives the hotel company an additional 857 rooms, the expansion will also create 250 jobs, with all entry level staff being recruited through its employment partner, Job Centre Plus.

The new hotels will be located in:

Location / Investment

Edinburgh Rose St £2.9m

Edinburgh Waterloo Place £8.0m

High Wycombe Octagon £6.5m

Ipswich £3.7m

Llanelli £2.0m

London Ealing £6.9m

Manchester Piccadilly £7.9m

Newbury £2.7m

Newcastle Under Lyme £3m

Wadebridge £3m

Total £46.6m

Upon construction, these sites will add 857 rooms to Travelodge's existing 27,000 room portfolio. The new exchanges include new sites in Edinburgh and Manchester, building on the budget hotel company's strategy of moving into the major UK cities. Travelodge has also gained its first hotels in High Wycombe, London Ealing, Newcastle-under-Lyme and Wadebridge.

Travelodge's Managing Director for Development, Paul Harvey said: "With 60 exchanges announced in 2009, we have now signed more hotels this year than ever before. Whilst the property market is still challenging we have been able to add some fantastic sites to our estate. With this selection of hotels, we have managed to enter new towns for the first time and also build on our strength in the major cities.

"We are now the biggest hotel brand in Edinburgh having doubled our room stock in the city in the last 24 months and now operate eight sites in Manchester."

The budget hotel chain has also recently secured planning permission for Newton Abbot, Colwyn Bay, Maidenhead, Ealing (above) and High Wycombe (above).

About Travelodge

The first budget hotel brand to launch in the UK in 1985, Travelodge now operates 385 hotels 27,000 rooms ten in Ireland, three in Spain and the rest in the UK. Travelodge plans to grow its estate to 70,000 rooms approximately 1000 hotels by 2020.

Six and a half million people stayed with Travelodge last year and 87% of reservations are currently made online at travelodge.co.uk, where room rates start at £19 a night. The chain employs 5,500 staff and is owned by Dubai International Capital.

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