Travelodge opens first Essex site since lockdown

Travelodge has opened its first hotel in Maldon, marking the first Essex-based hotel in its portfolio to open since lockdown. The 60-room site took 13 months to complete, and will be the 13th Essex hotel operated by Travelodge. It represents a multi-million investment for third party investors, and has created 15 new jobs within the community. The hotel, which has a range of family, double and accessible rooms, has been designed in the company’s brand design. All rooms feature a king-size Travelodge Dreamer bed, mood lighting, “spacious” shelving and charging ports. The rooms also feature an en-suite bathroom, power shower, comfort cooling, a 32-inch Freeview TV, free in-room tea & coffee making facilities and access to Wi-Fi. The site will also operate under the group’s Covid-19 safety and social distance programme, Travelodge Protect +, which has been developed by a cross-functional hygiene strategy team, in line with government guidance. The scheme includes multiple measures to keep the site safe, including comprehensive cleaning using an antiviral disinfectant, additional post-clean room checks with digital tracking in place, and the comprehensive training of every hotel team member. In addition, it will operate with protective reception screens, floor signage, hand sanitiser stations, contactless payments and contactless check-outs. Will Bone, manager at Maldon Travelodge, said: “This year, Travelodge, the UK’s first budget hotel chain celebrates 35 years of making travel affordable for everyone. “To mark this milestone, we are delighted to open our first hotel in Maldon, which is also the town’s first branded hotel and our 13th Travelodge in Essex. With this opening we now extend our network of hotels across all corners of the Essex region.” He added: “With Covid-19 safety measures at the forefront of our business and for customers, we have worked closely with our hotel teams that stayed open during the lockdown, government and industry bodies to develop our new Covid-19 safety programme called TravelodgeProtect+. “This safety programme is designed to keep our customers and teams safe and has been implemented into all Travelodge hotels and also features in our new Workington Travelodge hotel.”