The owners of a Perthshire hotel have invested £1.25 million in a new development believing the tourism sector will recover.
J and R Group, owners of McKays Hotel in Pitlochry, are building 12 new bedrooms and creating a 100-seat function suite at the hotel.
There are also plans to establish a McKays townhouse with two apartments followed by the refurbishment of seven en-suite bedrooms at the site of the former Caffe Scozia.
The £1.25m development takes J and R Group’s total investment in McKays to around £3m and the number of rooms to 39.
J and R Group director Richard Drummond says he has confidence in the Atholl Road hotel.
“Our approach has been to continually reinvest in the business to improve the quality for customers,” he says.
“We grew sales through the last financial crash of 2007 and 2008, and we have grown the business since then.
“That gave the bank confidence in us as operators, and they also saw the impact when we began to build up our portfolio of rooms.”
Pitlochry events keep McKays busy
Dundee building firm Alpha Projects undertook the construction at McKays as a live project, allowing the hotel to trade as normal over summer.
The development was planned before the pandemic, but had to be postponed due to lockdowns.
With the return of events such as the Enchanted Forest show, March Into Pitlochry music festival and Hogmanay Street Party, McKays has seen solid advance bookings.
Despite tourism sector losses over the Covid pandemic and fears over looming energy price hikes, J and R Group are confident the sector will recover in the longer term.
“We genuinely believe we are offering something that not every hotel has,” says Mr Drummond.
“Pitlochry can be like a League of Nations. It is a place of beauty and has a charm in itself.
“I don’t think we are back at maximum again. That may take a couple of years but we are confident the international market will return.”
Conversation