NHS heroes welcomed to Oban and Loch Fyne by Crerar Hotels
A leading Scottish hotel group welcomed more than 380 key workers and their families last weekend to say thank you for their efforts during the pandemic, writes Ellis Butcher.
Crerar Hotels dedicated all rooms across its portfolio of seven hotels entirely to NHS key workers, including the 74-room Oban Bay Hotel on the Corran Esplanade, and hotels on the Isle of Mull and Inveraray.
It amounted to 850 guests and 2,000 complimentary overnight stays between August 14-16 and resulted in upwards of £250,000 being spent by the hotel group to express its gratitude.
At Oban Bay Hotel, pipers welcomed the guests, who enjoyed welcome drinks on the hotel’s sea deck. At Loch Fyne Hotel & Spa, the heroes were greeted with a colourful rainbow display from the children of Inveraray, who were also armed with pots and pans to hail their arrival.
Chris Wayne Wills, chief executive officer of Crerar Hotels, said: ‘We were so pleased to welcome over 380 NHS heroes and their families from across Scotland for a weekend of celebrations. It was great to see them all relax and have a good time.
‘All seven of our hotels, from Nairn to Oban, threw open their doors in honour of the incredible key workers, who continue to put themselves on the front line, day in and day out. I and the Crerar Hotels team were lucky enough to meet many of these courageous workers face to face and personally thank them for all of their work.’
Each guest received a personal note of thanks from First Minister Nicola Sturgeon. It read: ‘Our Scottish NHS workers have been our first line of defence against Covid-19 and we are all in their debt. It’s heartening to see that despite all the current economic challenges in hospitality, Crerar Hotels have still found time to reflect the debt of gratitude we all feel.’
Crerar Hotels was founded in 2005 by Paddy Crerar CBE. More than half of the company’s distributable profits are gifted annually to local causes and charities through the company’s Crerar Trust.