A LEADING hotel in west Suffolk is in line for major investment after been sold privately for an undisclosed sum.

The 55-bedroom four-star Bedford Lodge, in Bury Road, Newmarket, has been acquired by Review Hotels following a sale process handled by agent Colliers International.

Included in Review’s investment plans are the addition of a spa and further luxury bedrooms.

Colin Bothway, the principal shareholder and chairman of Bedford Lodge Ltd, said: “Ever since we bought the hotel in 1989 when it had just 14 bedrooms, it has been an exceptionally good business.

“We are grateful for the loyal custom from local residents, leading figures from the horse racing and breeding industry as well as the broad array of other business-based and private guests that have all combined to develop Bedford Lodge into what it is today.

“We also enjoyed the support of Tom Chaplin as a fellow shareholder, but sadly he died in the summer. So we decided the moment was right to accept an attractive offer for the business, which will allow us to concentrate on our other interests.”

Over the years, the hotel has been transformed into a leading local venue, with bar, restaurant, banqueting, conference and health club facilities, as well as beingpopular with national and international visitors to the town.

It is the only four-star hotel in Newmarket and has already been the subject of multi-million-pound investment in recent years, with all the bedrooms having undergone substantial refurbishment.

The reception has also been transformed, the Edge Health & Fitness Club redesigned and the seven meeting and banqueting rooms refurbished with state of the art audio-visual systems.

Mr Bothway added: “We have an exceptionally strong team of staff at Bedford Lodge and I would like to acknowledge the excellent results and service they deliver consistently. I am delighted they will continue to be led by Noel Byrne under the hotel’s new ownership.

“I would also like to recognise the efforts of our professional advisers at Colliers International, who conducted the sale negotiations with great integrity, Larking Gowen who provided us with valued financial advice and Leathes Prior, who handled the legal processes most efficiently.

“We wish the new owners every success with taking Bedford Lodge forward to the next stage of its development and I look forward to regularly returning as a customer in the future.”