Dundee is “the most exciting tourism opportunity in Scotland”, according to the manager of the city’s newest international hotel franchise.
General manager Richard Ellison made the comments before a flag-raising ceremony to mark the rebranding of the Landmark Hotel, Kingsway West, into a Hilton Double Tree.
Miss Dundee, Conner Harvey, who also works at the hotel, raised the Double Tree flag over the site in preparation for the launch of the new franchise on Thursday.
Double Tree is the fastest growing of 10 franchise brands in the UK owned by Hilton Hotels. Mr Ellison says that the rebranding marks an exciting time for Dundee generally.
“Dundee is the most exciting tourism opportunity for development in Scotland,” he said.
“With the V&A museum arriving, as well as the entire waterfront redevelopment, we are more desirable than ever as a tourist destination.”
He believes this growth is only likely to increase as the city continues its bid to become the City of Culture in 2017.
“I’m really excited about the City of Culture bid. I feel pretty hopeful that we can win it and from a purely business point of view it would clearly be fantastic,” he said.
Dundee recently lost its old Hilton hotel as part of the waterfront redevelopment, but Mr Ellis believes that the Landmark’s rebranding will help fill that void.”
He continued: “Hilton is an international brand and our rebranding with them helps retain Dundee’s reputation as a global player with a global identity.”
The new Double Tree hotel will join a growing number of high-end hotels in the city, including the Apex Hotel and Spa and the Malmaison, which is expected to open in September.