voco™, IHG’s new upscale brand, has made its Europe debut with the opening of voco™ St. David’s, Cardiff, hot on the heels of the brand’s first opening globally, voco™ Gold Coast in Australia earlier in November. Just five months after the brand was launched in June 2018, these two hotel openings mark the brand’s rapid expansion.

The 142-room hotel sits on Cardiff Bay, with floor-to-ceiling windows offering guests stunning views of the waterfront, including the murmuration of starlings over the water at dusk. With private balconies and a coastal setting, the hotel provides guests with a tranquil place to stay, close to the city-centre of the Welsh capital. The award-winning Marine Spa offers both local residents and guests from out of town the perfect spot to unwind, with comforting treatments sure to make guests come away feeling thoroughly pampered. With eight different meeting spaces, the hotel’s experienced team can cater to a variety of events – from weddings of up to 220 guests to corporate meetings for up to 400 people.

The hotel, which was previously Principal St David’s Cardiff, has benefitted from the voco™ brand’s bold and distinctive design, with deep colours adding depth and warmth to public spaces and a touch of the brand’s charming character to guest rooms. voco, inspired by the meaning ‘to invite’ or to ‘come together’ in Latin, combines the informality and charm of an individual hotel, with the quality and reassurance of a global and respected brand.

Russell Durnell, General Manager, voco™ St, David’s, Cardiff commented: “We are incredibly proud to be the first voco in the UK and the second in the world. voco is about delivering a great guest experience with an independent spirit.  The team are thrilled to be bring this new brand and service culture to life in Cardiff and look forward to welcoming guests, new and old, with our typical Welsh warmth.”

Karan Khanna, Managing Director, UK & Ireland, IHG commented: “We launched the voco brand in June so it is fantastic to see the brand already getting a foothold in the UK market. With a focus on conversion opportunities, voco allows us to retain the existing charm of an independent hotel whilst also bringing the reassurance of a trusted brand, along with the power and strength of IHG’s systems.”

voco is focussed on conversion opportunities and strengthens IHG’s offer in the $40 billion upscale segment, which is expected to grow by a further $20 billion by 2025. The new brand will drive significant incremental growth for IHG, with an expectation to open more than 200 voco hotels in attractive urban and leisure locations over the next 10 years.

There are expected to be more than fifteen signings in total for the voco brand by the end of 2018. IHG currently has 338 hotels operating under six brands in UK the including: InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Hotel Indigo, Staybridge Suites,Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express, with another 34 in the pipeline.

To learn more about voco, visit: www.vocohotels.com.