Closure for Woburn Hotel after coronavirus wreaks havoc on leisure industry

The four-star rated, 18th-century Woburn Hotel – situated on the Duke of Bedford’s Woburn Abbey estate – has announced it will not reopen its doors after more than three months of closure during lockdown.

The upscale venue is located two miles from Woburn Abbey and three miles from Woburn Safari Park.

Dozens of staff are employed at the 55-bedroom hotel, and it is unknown whether they will be redeployed elsewhere.

Members of the public reacted with shock when news of the closure broke last week.

One woman posted online: “I think this is devastating for the Woburn economy. Visitors and locals will be worse off.”

A man added: “I cannot believe it, this is such a shock.

“I had so many lovely times meeting people there and chatting with all the staff.

“Everyone there was so smart, so professional and utterly charming. This is such very sad news.”

In its official announcement last week, the hotel stated: “Having closed our doors on Saturday, March 21, following the government directive, it is with much regret that the extremely difficult decision has been made for The Woburn Hotel to remain closed permanently.

“Our dedicated colleagues are now in the process of contacting all our guests who have forthcoming reservations with us.

“If you do wish to contact us, please do so on [email protected] and we will respond to your query as soon as possible.

“We would like to thank all of our guests, colleagues and partners for your loyalty, support and friendship to us all over the years and wish you well for the future.”

The LBO’s former Woburn correspondent, Gill Green, said: “As it belongs to the Bedford Estate, what we are all hoping for is that they can find a franchise to step in and run it.

“The hotel wasn’t always run by the estate. About 20 years ago, they had another franchise managing it."

The LBO contacted the hotel for further comment but they did not respond before we went to press.

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