Peterborough's £40 million Hilton Garden Inn pushes earliest bookings into December

Guests for Peterborough’s Hilton Garden Inn are being told that December 15 is now the earliest they can book a room.

The online booking service for the £40 million hotel at Fletton Quays states that reservations are now being taken for dates from December 15 onwards.

It was only a few weeks ago that reservations at the 160-room hotel could be made for July 17 onwards.

A spokesperson for the building’s owners Propiteer Hotels said: “The pre-sale dates for taking bookings for the hotel are put in place by Hilton.

"The hotel is expected to be open prior to this but an exact opening date has not yet been confirmed.”

Construction of the hotel, which sits on the banks of the River Nene, has been hit by delays that have dashed hopes for an opening early this year.

Building work on the hotel began in 2020 and in the middle of last year civic and business leaders were invited to a topping out ceremony to mark a milestone in its construction.

Guests, who gathered in April last year in what will become one of the hotel’s key selling points – a Sky Bar overlooking the Cathedral - were told by Steve Cassidy, managing director, UK and Ireland, Hilton, that he was looking forward to the hotel opening in January.

But problems that would delay the opening were already becoming a headache.

In March last year, Propiteer Hotels asked Peterborough City Council to extend a £15 million two year loan due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic though lockdowns, staff illness and supply chain problems.

In February this year, it was revealed that collapse of the main contractor building the hotel and supply chain difficulties meant the opening would be moved to the summer.

Earlier this month the council agreed a new extension to loan to the end of the year.

Just last week, the Hilton Garden Inn announced the appointment of its Head Chef, Claudiu Taban, and its Food and Drinks Manager, Bruno Duarte Gomes.

Richard Martin, director of Propiteer Hotels, the building’s owner, said: “The appointments of Claudiu and Bruno represent another significant milestone as we work towards the opening of what will be Peterborough’s finest hotel.”