An iconic Lake District hotel, on the shores of Grasmere, has been sold for an undisclosed sum.
The four star Daffodil Hotel and Spa has been bought by Fairtree Alternative Real Estate advised by Blantyre Capital Limited.
It is the third hotel the partners have bought, following on from luxury Scottish hotels Fonab Castle Hotel and Dunkeld House in Perthshire earlier this year.
The 78-room Daffodil Hotel and Spa was built in 1855 by Levi Hodgson and originally called Browns Lake Hotel after its owner Edward Brown.
Shortly after the hotel opened, it was visited by the Prince of Wales who later became Edward VII and as a result Brown decided to change the hotel’s name to The Prince of Wales Hotel.
In 1984 the Town End area of Grasmere, where the hotel is situated, was made a conservation area. The hotel was briefly known as Thistle Grasmere followed by The Waterside.
It was opened as the Daffodil Hotel and Spa on July 21 2012 and was owned and run by the Harwood and Brady families.
The driving force behind the hotel’s redevelopment was the late Tom Harwood, a builder and hotelier in the area for over 40 years. He owned and developed the Stonecross Manor in Kendal, The Damson Dene Hotel at Crosthwaite and the Craig Manor Hotel in Bowness.
He died suddenly but his daughter Amanda, her husband Mark, and Tim Matthews, a family friend, pressed ahead with Tom’s plans.
Joe Bester, portfolio manager at Fairtree, said: “We’re pleased to announce our latest acquisition with Blantyre as we curate our UK luxury leisure portfolio. Daffodil Hotel & Spa is a premium leisure destination in a stunning popular location which attracts visitors from across the globe with significant opportunities for adding value and improving the offering.”
Julian Troup, of Colliers, advised the vendors. He said: “This is a significant individual hotel sale in the Lake District and reflects strong future demand from customers keen to holiday in the Lake District.
“It’s a strategic addition to the fund’s growing value-add portfolio operated by the Fairtree Hotel Management team of select luxury UK hotels and it’s notable that this sale coincides with the fifth anniversary of the Lake District acquiring its UNESCO World Heritage Site status.”
Keith Melling and Wendy Keely of Napthens Solicitors advised the selling shareholders.
