Former Llandudno hotel for the blind on course to open before end of year

A FORMER hotel for the blind and partially sighted people in Llandudno is still on course to open before the end of the year.

The Belmont Hotel was one of the few hotels in the UK catering entirely for blind guests, and MBi Hotels purchased the building from the Royal Blind Society in January.

The firm revealed they will leave six of the 27 rooms open to visually impaired guests.

Simon Moppett, managing director of MBi Hotel Management Ltd, said: “Everything is progressing as it should be at this stage, and we still anticipate to be open by the end of the year.

“We have appointed an interior decorator to come up with the designs for the new hotel, and I don’t envisage too many problems as the building was well maintained by the Royal Blind Society.

“We will be leaving a number of rooms open to blind guests to ensure that those who have used the hotel to visit Llandudno in the past continue to come to the town.”

The hotel, on North Parade, closed its doors for the final time in December after charity citied long-term falling demand and financial pressure as the reason behind putting it up for sale in May, 2014.

It will be reopened under a new name of the Heritage Hotel.

MBi Developments have invested significantly in the town in recent months, and opened the Llandudno Bay Hotel earlier this year.

They have also purchased the former Grand Theatre site on Mostyn Broadway, in addition to a major sponsorship deal with Llandudno Football Club.

Cllr Frank Bradfield, mayor of Llandudno, said: “This is great news for those visually impaired people who still want to come to Llandudno, and for the resort as a whole.

“It was disappointing that the Belmont had to close initially, but the news that rooms are being left open at the new Heritage Hotel ensures that Llandudno is still an option for visually impaired people.”

The former Belmont had been providing holidays to blind and partially sighted people since 2002.

Published by: Dean Jones www.northwalespioneer.co.uk