Crest Hotels buys Avisford Park off £8.95m guide price

Crest Hotels has acquired Avisford Park in Arundel, West Sussex, off a guide price of £8.95m from Albitar Business Corporation.

The former owner brought the property to market with a guide price of £10.5m last year.

The former Hilton hotel occupies a site measuring approximately 60 acres and has 15 meeting/function rooms, a bar, restaurant and 270 car parking spaces. It also has health and fitness facilities including a gym, squash court, sauna and steam room, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, tennis courts and a golf course.

Crest Hotels said: “We are delighted and proud to be the new owners of the Avisford Park hotel. As a group, we have now strategically acquired 8 hotels to date and the addition of Avisford Park really does bolster our portfolio to attract both leisure and business guests alike. Its reputation as an iconic hotel is something we will be building on, further consolidating its position within the community and beyond whilst supporting the economics and tourism of the county.

“As owners, we like to fully embrace the region, people and businesses in which we operate and we look forward to working with the team in situ, backed by our team of experts in the group, to really elevate the business to the next level; with quality of customer experience and facilities we pride ourselves on delivering.”

Henry Jackson, head of hotel agency at Knight Frank, which advised on the sale, said: “The Knight Frank hotels team are delighted to conclude the final sale within this hotel portfolio. Crest have great plans for Avisford Park and I look forward to seeing how the business evolves. We are instructed on 63 regional hotel sales, with an average lot size of £12m which provides us with a competitive edge in identifying the most active capital looking to acquire hotels in the market. We expect increased competition from investors for hotels as we move into 2023.”

Crest also acquired the Metropole Hotel & Spa in Llandrindod Wells, Powys last month.