A National Park charity has raised concerns about the growing number of hotels being lost in the area.
Friends of Loch Lomond and The Trossachs, the independent conservation and heritage charity covering the National Park, has commented on several recent planning applications lodged with LLTNPA planners.
The charity claim the growing number of small and medium size hotels being lost to private residential accommodation and other uses is accelerating the trend towards creating more dormitory settlements and reducing local employment opportunities.
They add that this follows on from the loss of a raft of hotels in recent years due to the impact of COVID 19, major increases in running costs, staffing difficulties and owner lifestyle changes with conversion to private residential or self-catering holiday accommodation being more profitable and less demanding.
Friends chair James Fraser said: “It is very disappointing to see the scale of loss of family run hotels in the National Park in recent times, but this is inevitable given the major challenges and pressures faced by owners in such a difficult trading environment.
“With the loss of smaller hotels and the retrenchment of some of the larger hotel operations some of the tourist appeal of the National Park is being diluted and there is a real danger of more communities becoming dormitory commuter and retirement retreats and lacking in the diversity and vibrancy derived from having a blend of enterprises locally with employment opportunities.
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“The Park Authority is currently preparing a new Five-year Partnership Plan for the National Park which will set out key challenges and proposed actions. We fully anticipate the Park Authority will major on the climate and nature emergencies, but it is also vitally important that they also try and tackle the people dimension to reverse the drift towards creating more dormitory towns and villages.”
Stuart Mearns, Director of Place at LLTNPA, said, however that “outwith a small number of accommodation businesses which have this year returned to purely residential use, or are seeking to” the authority had not seen a significant number of hotels closing and shifting to permanent residential use.
“We continue to receive regular applications for new accommodation,” he added. “Overall, the decrease in some types of accommodation needs to be viewed with a broader view that includes new accommodation, particularly non-serviced accommodation, which is in growing demand.
“These are difficult times for the hospitality and tourism industry and operators are having to respond to multiple challenges including recruitment and a significant drop in international tourism post-pandemic. This has been set against changes in the market over time - notably a shift towards self-catering accommodation. The challenges and trends being felt by tourism businesses here in the National Park are the same current national issues being highlighted by hotels, restaurants and other industry operators across Scotland.
“We work closely with local tourism businesses through our well-established National Park Destination Group and understand how important tourism income is for our local communities and the economy. The sector supports 5,000 jobs among a population of around 15,000 people who live here, so we have planning policies in place that seek to help to safeguard visitor infrastructure and facilities such as hotels and as a Park Authority we invest significant resources in managing the millions of visitors who come here every year.”
Earlier this year The Waverley Hotel in Callander was given permission to convert its second floor into two five-bedroom homes of multiple occupancy (HMOs), to cater for seasonal worker demand in agriculture and tourism.
In their decision, park planners said: “The proposal will result in the loss of some potential visitor accommodation in the park (less than 50 per cent of the hotel rooms, eight out of 18). There are numerous hotels in and around Callander which provide the traditional hotel experience. It is recognised that visitor demands are changing and the trend is now for airbnb where tourists can enjoy more independence.”
Last year the park authority approved a request to convert the Coach House Hotel at Killin into a house. The eight-bed hotel had failed to find a buyer despite being put up for sale several years ago. The planners said while ideally visitor facilities should be retained wherever possible, enough effort had been made to sell it as a going concern and there was alternative hotel, guesthouse and B&B provision in the vicinity.