YORK’S Monk Bar Hotel is to be regenerated and renamed as DoubleTree by Hilton York, following a further £3 million investment.

Hilton has signed a franchise agreement with Leisurepoint, a wholly owned subsidiary of Shiva Hotels, to re-open the hotel in St Maurice’s Road with the new name.

The latest investment, which comes on top of a separate £3 million investment a couple of years ago, will see the number of guest rooms rise from 126 to 140 and will also include a new fitness centre, re-configured reception and new dining concept.

Hotel general manager Graham Usher said the conversion under DoubleTree by Hilton was a milestone in the 27-year history of the hotel, which is situated near York’s historic Monk Bar.

“The latest round of redevelopment will ensure DoubleTree by Hilton York’s place as one of the finest hotels in this city’s centre,” he said.

“This is fantastic news for us and demonstrates the confidence in the team here to deliver exceptional hospitality to our guests.

“The project is also great for the city of York – a testament to the city as a business and travel destination.”

Mr Usher, who is chair of York Hoteliers Association, spoke out last month about VAT in the tourist sector, urging the Chancellor to use his budget to cut it and saying that whilst York’s tourism industry was flourishing, it still needed to remain affordable and competitive.

Patrick Fitzgibbon, senior vice president, development, EMEA, Hilton said Shiva Hotels was a close partner, with four hotels under four brands across the UK trading or under construction.

“Projects in Heathrow Terminal 5 and London Waterloo have proven very successful and, along with DoubleTree by Hilton York, we’re looking forward later this year to opening one of our first Curio Collection hotels in London, at Canary Wharf with Shiva Hotels.”

DoubleTree by Hilton is a fast-growing, global portfolio of nearly 500 ‘upscale’ hotels with more than 117,000 rooms in gateway cities, metropolitan areas and vacation destinations across six continents, which welcome guests with a warm DoubleTree Cookie.

Hilton is a leading global hospitality company,with more than 4,900 properties and over 800,000 rooms in 104 countries.