Budget hotel chain Travelodge has further strengthened its UK presence by acquiring four existing Ibis-branded properties across the country.

The brand, which already operates more than 610 hotels in the UK, said it plans to rebrand the four former Ibis hotels located in Preston, Bradford Shipley, Chesterfield and Cardiff, which comprise a total of 324 rooms.

Travelodge has acquired the freehold interest in three of these properties, while the property in Cardiff has been acquired under a 25-year lease agreement. The hotels will be refurbished ¡°later this year¡± and will reflect the group¡¯s latest design standards as part of its ongoing ¡®budget-luxe¡¯ upgrade programme.

The 82-room hotel in Preston North is located close to the M6, while the ¡®scenic¡¯ 78-room property in Bradford Shipley provides rail connections to Leeds, the group said.

Meanwhile, the 86-room hotel in Chesterfield Town Centre is located within walking distance of the town centre and railway station, and the 78-key Cardiff Gate property is ¡°within easy reach¡± of the city centre and Cardiff International Airport.?

The move follows the group¡¯s acquisition in April of 11 hotels across UK as it continues its aggressive expansion across the country.

Travelodge chief property and development officer, Steve Bennett, said:?¡°These acquisitions are another strong addition to our UK portfolio and demonstrate the continued momentum behind our rebrand-led growth strategy.

¡°We¡¯re seeing increasing opportunities to convert well-located, existing hotels into Travelodges, and we¡¯re actively looking for more.¡±

Bennett added that the company has identified a further 300 locations to target across to UK and another 20 in Spain.