THE Holiday Inn Express on Market Street in Barrow celebrated its first birthday yesterday in what has been a turbulent time.

The 127-room Holiday Inn Express opened last December, at the time members of the local emergency services joined general manager Mark Winter to cut the ribbon and officially declare the hotel open.

The glorious start was brought to a halt as it had to close in March after the government put the country into lockdown.

Mark Winter, general manager of the hotel, said: “Both myself and the team are absolutely delighted that we celebrate our first birthday.

"When we opened the hotel on the December 2, 2019, we never would have thought that three months in we would be hit with a global pandemic.

"That said, we have worked tremendously hard with the ever changing restrictions and procedures and have been able to welcome over 27,000 guests to the hotel.

"In the summer we were able to benefit from Staycation travel with over 10,000 guests visiting Barrow in Furness and the surrounding Lakes within just two months, July and August 2020.

"Whenever you have a birthday, you take time to reflect on the year that has just passed and when I reflect on everything that has happened, I believe that the foundation of this hotel isn’t the bricks and mortar but the team within."

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It had such a promising start at the old police station offering free hot drinks for emergency workers coming in, but they continued to work hard and managed to reinvent their layout inside to adhere to social distancing rules.

Back in June they had their second opening in their first seven months where they introduced special measures due to the coronavirus pandemic, including a special grab and go breakfast being created and self-service lunch, dinner all made available to guests. In addition to this, in order to help guests, the hotel produced a video which outlined the measures it had taken.

The team worked around the clock for both openings and showcased the community spirit which has been one of the positives to come out of the pandemic.

"The hospitality industry has been hit hard and everyone has had to make personal sacrifices, such as taking 80 per cent of their wage on furlough," Mr Winter continued.

"Without the loyalty, commitment and support of the team; this year would have been significantly more challenging.

"However we look forward to 2021, bringing our ideas with the local community to life and fulfil our ambition to be a community hub in Barrow Town Centre. We are very excited for 2021!”