Our story.
We’re Atlas Hotels, the biggest franchise of Holiday Inn Express hotels in Europe. Our expertise, passion for hospitality and strong company culture make us stand out.
Scroll down to learn more about our history, awards and brands.
Hotels
YEARS IN BUSINESS
OUR BRANDS
About us.
We manage 60 branded hotels, with nearly 20 years of experience and a proven track record in delivering excellent results across the hotel industry, specifically in the limited-service market.
Read more about the history of Atlas below, or take a look at our hotels here.
About us
We manage 60 branded hotels, with nearly 20 years of experience and a proven track record in delivering excellent results across the hotel industry, specifically in the limited-service market.
Read more about the history of Atlas below, or take a look at our hotels here.
1 Hotel
1996 - Where it all began
Where did it all begin? Well, way back in 1996, Somerston Hotels formed and we opened our first hotel – Holiday Inn Express Warwick – a year later.
15 Hotels
1997-2002 - Gaining Momentum
Over the next four years, Somerston grew rapidly, adding another 14 (yes, fourteen!) hotels to the group. Things were getting serious…
31 Hotels
2005 - Double the fun
2005 was a huge year! We more than doubled in size, going from 15 hotels to 31. At this point, we became Europe’s largest franchisee of Holiday Inn Express hotels (bragging rights included).
34 Hotels
2006 - A triple addition
By the end of 2006, we had another three hotels under our belt, in Leeds, Dartford and Poole. Still following? Great, so that takes us up to 34 hotels.
34 Hotels
2008-2010 - Hello Hampton
In 2008, Holiday Inn Express Lincoln opened its doors for the first time and we welcome our first guests to the newly built Hampton by Hilton Liverpool. A few hotels were sold, so we still have 34 hotels by 2010. But not for long…
46 Hotels
2014-2015 - Atlas Hotels is born
In 2014, Lone Star bought and merged Somerston Hotels, More Than Hotels plus Holiday Inn Express Hamilton and we became Atlas Hotels. We started managing Hilton Portsmouth which we later transformed into a flagship Holiday Inn Express hotel.
46 Hotels
2016 - Portsmouth Opens
In 2016, L+R (A big hotel and property investment company) took over Atlas. L+R have hotels and luxury 5-star resorts all over the world. 2016 was also the year Holiday Inn Express Portsmouth – North was opened.
48 Hotels
2017-2018 - Excitement in Exeter
There were huge public area transformations in three of our hotels and the extension of Holiday Inn Express Bath was completed. In 2017 we announced that we were converting an old office block in Exeter city centre into a shiny new Holiday Inn Express. The 48th hotel in the Atlas family.
49 Hotels
2019 - Another new hotel
Work officially commenced on Holiday Inn Express Bicester, our first new-build hotel since Liverpool. Holiday Inn Express Exeter – City Centre opened in May and more extension projects kicked off in Edinburgh, Hammersmith and Cambridge.
51 Hotels
2020 - A new decade begins
Fast forward to 2020, Holiday Inn Edinburgh City - West joined Atlas and was transformed into our second Holiday Inn Express in Scotland’s capital. Holiday Inn Express Bicester opened its doors and our extension projects were complete.
53 Hotels
2021 - Hello Birmingham
Holiday Inn Express Edinburgh - City West opened its doors after a major refurbishment and rebrand. We gained two more hotels in Birmingham. Holiday Inn Express Birmingham - Snow Hill and Hampton by Hilton Jewellery Quarter.
59 Hotels
2022-2023 - Chardon acquired
We welcomed the Chardon portfolio to Atlas Hotels, which introduced 6 new hotels in Scotland, including the Holiday Inn Glasgow - City Centre Theatreland, Holiday Inn Express Dunfermline and Holiday Inn Express Perth.
60 Hotels
2024 - Branched out to Europe
In 2024, we officially opened Holiday Inn Express Dresden Zentrum which took us up to 59 hotels. Towards the end of 2024, we acquired Holiday Inn Express Folkestone taking us to 60 hotels, a 100-bedroom hotel near the Eurotunnel.