Owner of Llandudno's Grand hotel and closed Pontins site report profits boost despite 'worst chain' tag

The group that owns The Grand Hotel in Llandudno and last year closed the Pontins site in Prestatyn has posted boosted profits. Britannia is often under-fire from guests and was named as the UK's worst hotel chain for the 11th consecutive year in October last year, according to Which?'s rankings.

The Grand is also ranked as the worst hotel in Llandudno on TripAdvisor with twice as many reviewers rating it as "terrible" than those who said it was "excellent". Here is one couple's experience.

They also own the Pontins brand which suddenly closed the holiday site in Prestatyn last year - with no update yet on its future despite repeated requests for information.

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Despite these difficulties the chain has reported a strong financial performance. The hotel chain has seen an increase in pre-tax profit from £33.4m in 2022 to £39.4m in 2023. New documents on Companies House also showed an increase in the number of employees, from 1,818 to 2,365. Meanwhile, turnover jumped from £117.8m to £154.8m.

In a statement signed off by the board, it said: "This results represents an exceptional performance achieved during a period of difficult trading conditions which continues to limit opportunities for growth. Our priorities continue to be maintaining occupancy levels and to manage operating costs whilst ensuring that the business is well placed to exploit the opportunities of the future."

The directors added they also look to "exploit further investment in new properties" in the future.

In Which?'s annual survey of the worst hotel chain in the UK, Britannia Hotels came bottom in 16th place. It received a score of just 48% and a one-star rating for bedrooms, bathrooms and quality of the wi-fi. The chain scored no higher than two stars in any of the remaining categories – including cleanliness.

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