Haven to open Wetherspoon pubs as part of ‘exclusive partnership’

Haven has entered an exclusive commercial partnership with J D Wetherspoon, which will see the pub group operating at its holiday parks.

It makes Haven the first and only UK holiday park operator to have entered an agreement of this kind with the pub company, which has 830 pubs across its portfolio.

The first Haven Wetherspoon pub will open in March in Haven Primrose Valley Holiday Park in North Yorkshire, following a £1.1m investment.

Haven has invested over £170m across its 41 holiday parks over the past year.

The latest partnership with J D Wetherspoon falls under an additional £4m investment into expand Haven’s food and beverage offering, which currently features Burger King, Costa Coffee, Millie’s Cookies and Chopstix.

Peter Blake, chief operating officer at Haven, said: “We are thrilled to be the first holiday provider to partner with one of the UK’s leading and much-loved pub operators. This new venture underlines our dedication to growing our food and beverage partnerships and offering for our holidaymakers and holiday homeowners.”

Michael Barron, commercial director of Wetherspoon, added: “We are delighted to be partnering with Haven and are confident that the pub will prove popular with holidaymakers.”

Haven was acquired by private investment banking company Blackstone in 2021 alongside Butlin’s and Warner Leisure Hotels.