Three Scottish hotels up for sale amid 'dramatic' impact of Covid-19

Three Scottish hotels have come to the market following the winding up of a coach tour business amid the Covid-19 crisis.

The Glenmorag Hotel in Dunoon is one of the three Scottish establishments to be put up for sale.

Glenmorag Hotel in Dunoon, the Garve Hotel and Strathpeffer’s Mackay’s Hotel are being sold after Donald McNaught and Matt Henderson of Johnston Carmichael were appointed joint nominees for a proposed company voluntary arrangement (CVA) on behalf of three companies in the David Urquhart Group.

A spokesperson for the David Urquhart Group directors said: “The ongoing coronavirus crisis has had a dramatic impact on all business sectors, but especially on those within the travel and tourism industry where it is impossible to establish when operations will return to normal.

“The directors have made the decision, in the absence of interested parties, to wind up the coach tour business in an orderly manner over the next few months.

“This is not a decision which has been taken lightly. The coach tour company has served loyal customers for more than 37 years, throughout the length and breadth of the United Kingdom and Ireland, and has been a prominent figure within the leisure and hospitality industry.”

Robert Smithson of property firm Colliers International said: “These three properties are substantial, well established hotel assets in excellent trading locations, so we expect strong levels of interest from UK and international buyers. The properties provide an outstanding opportunity to acquire an instant portfolio of over 175 letting bedrooms; but our client would also consider offers for each of the popular hotels.”

The CVA relates to three companies in the David Urquhart Group; David Urquhart (Travel) Limited, David Urquhart Transport Limited and Hart Hotels Limited. The CVA proposal is aimed at allowing the orderly wind down of the business, primarily the sale of three hotels owned by Hart Hotels, which is anticipated to generate sufficient funds to repay creditors in full.

McNaught of Johnston Carmichael added: “Having used the CVA process to successfully protect businesses in the past, I see it becoming an invaluable tool in the current crisis.”

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

Subscribe to scotsman.com and enjoy unlimited access to Scottish news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit https://www.scotsman.com/subscriptions now to sign up.

Our journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.

Joy Yates

Editorial Director