Morefield Motel & Mariners Restaurant Ullapool Ross-shire, Ullapool, IV26

Popular Motel with 10 en-suite letting bedrooms with an excellent lounge bar plus dining conservatory and function / breakfast room. Includes a private 3-bedroom flat for owners.

• Opportunity to purchase a traditional motel on the stunning North West coast of Scotland in an area popular with strong tourism links.

• Situated in the attractive village of Ullapool in a location offering a sound trading platform plus a spacious family home.

• Well-established business trading on a mainly year-round basis presenting a solid 'home and income' lifestyle opportunity.

• Easy-to-operate profitable establishment which includes 10 en-suite letting bedrooms with popular lounge bar plus dining conservatory and function / breakfast room.

• Includes a spacious and private self-contained 3-bedroom flat for resident owners.

• Attractive and well-presented beer garden with car parking for c40 cars, ideal for first-time buyers with catering / hospitality experience.

DESCRIPTION

The Morefield Motel is a popular and well-frequented Highland hostelry which benefits from an excellent central trading location within the popular and thriving coastal and fishing village of Ullapool. The property is set in a prominent position within a residential area of the village and has a great reputation locally, acting as a hub of the local community. The business benefits from an easy-to-operate bar and has excellent and varied dining facilities including a very popular conservatory. The motel has 10 en-suite letting bedrooms which are accessed directly from the car park.

The business is well-supported by modern service areas. The substantial kitchen has excellent appliances and extensive work spaces. There is an adjacent preparation room and a separate pot-wash area. Additional storages areas comprise a walk-in chiller and freezer plus a chilled cellar including ample general stores. A most attractive feature of the sale is the excellent 3-bedroom owner flat which is situated on the first floor above the trading elements. The flat includes a compact modern kitchen plus a spacious family lounge and a modern bathroom; there is also an office. The trading elements and the flexible owner's accommodation combine to make this an excellent proposition for first-time buyers or an extended family.

BUSINESS OPERATION

The business benefits from strong year-round local support and is pivotal to the local community. The motel benefits from seasonal demand from the large number of tourists who holiday within the area. Ullapool is a haven for many holiday makers who stay in the many local self-catering units and bed and breakfasts; both contribute to the footfall in the bar and catering aspects. The bar has a range of quality real ales. The motel drives strong turnover from the catering trade and has a good reputation on a number of review sites. The three trading areas have a distinct feel; the function room, which also acts as the breakfast room, provides an excellent area for private events. The lounge bar offers an informal dining experience within an area of traditional ambience. The conservatory is a lovely dining area for that special occasion.

The Motel has 2 winter league darts team plus hosts a number of regular meeting groups and annual dinners. The business is popular for small functions and is both the founder and host of the Ullapool Beer Festival. Within the lounge bar TVs show live sports via BT Sports drawing in strong custom on big match days. The external beer garden is popular during the warm summer evenings. Tourism is a key driver of income with many visitors undertaking the North Coast 500 as well as walking / climbing holidays, water sports, fishing, games sports etc. Others partake in more leisurely excursions of the many sites of historical interest or just take in the array of natural landscapes. Visitors include ornithologists and naturalists who find an abundance of wildlife to keep them busy for an extended stay. Many guests stay over in Ullapool during their crossing to Stornoway: the ferry draws in many visitors who travel to the Western Isles. The owners are registered hosts with Brit Stops which is a guide encouraging motorhome tourists to use the services provided by local businesses whilst they also offer two places for campervans to set-up.

STAFF

The business operates with the support of a dedicated team of staff. The kitchen has a head chef and crew producing a good quality of fayre. In addition, there is a professional team of front of house staff. The business normally employs a team of 9 staff in total.

REASON FOR SALE

The current owners purchased the Morefield Motel in 2003 and have developed the internal aspects of the property making it an attractive and popular venue. Having enjoyed operating a popular community-based business, the owners would now like to retire from the hospitality sector, presenting this superb opportunity to the market.

LOCATION

The Morefield Motel is surrounded by some of the most dramatic and beautiful scenery to be found in the country. The business is just a short walk (0.7miles) from the Caledonian MacBrayne ferry to Stornoway which leaves twice daily (once on Sundays) for those planning a trip to Lewis, Harris or the other Hebridean Islands. The property is easily accessible, located just off the A835 (the North Coast 500 tourist route), and benefits from good signage with upgrades taking place including the installation of two new signs. The immediate area is well served with facilities, shops and services for both locals and visitors alike. The North West Coast of Scotland attracts a large number of visitors and The Morefield Motel makes a perfect base from which visitors can continue their odyssey of the broader Highland region. Ullapool has a strong sense of community, with schools, golf course and social and welfare facilities. Inverness, the capital of the Highlands is a 65-minute drive away with a full range of services associated with a modern thriving City.

Ullapool has a population of c1600 which swells in the summer months with the influx of tourists. The village became an established fishing centre in the Mid-1700s and still has a fishing tradition. The village is popular with a range of tourists and is a popular stop for those undertaking the North Coast 500 tourist route. The village also has a strong music scene hosting dance, book, music and guitar festivals throughout the year, along with the popular Beer Festival held in October every year at the Morefield Motel.

THE PROPERTY

Dating from the mid-1900s, the property is of stone construction under slate roof. Areas of flat roof benefit from a sheet-metal profile covering with an area of rubber sheet roofing. The trading areas are set to the ground floor only with the owner's accommodation on the first floor.

TRADING AREAS

The trading elements of the motel are situated to the ground floor only and are accessed from a door off the main car park via a vestibule. There is a secondary customer entrance from the beer garden through the conservatory. From the reception hallway there are ladies, gents and disabled bathrooms; the latter has a baby changing facility. Further along is the function room, named Mariners Restaurant, which doubles as the breakfast room. This attractive room has an etched and branded glazed door and is configured to free-standing tables and chairs, comfortably seating up to 40 diners. There is a raised an area of soft furnishings which are used by resident guests. An attractive servery counter and a breakfast bar complete this appealing dining facility. The hallway leads to the spacious lounge bar which is configured to an 'L' shape with a large bar servery. The bar has a good mix of real ales and other beers plus a well-stocked gantry. Set to fitted bench seating and a mix of free-standing tables and chairs, the lounge bar can seat up to 60 covers. Within the lounge bar there is an area of dance floor and the bar has a TV (BT Sports) and darts lane. Off the lounge bar is the bright and commodious conservatory to seat 32 covers. The conservatory has patio doors leading to the beer garden.

LETTING BEDROOMS

The motel has 10 comfortable chalet style en-suite letting bedrooms which are all accessed from the rear carpark with parking outside each room. Each room is equipped with tea & coffee making facilities, Freeview television, hairdryers etc. Three rooms (2, 11 and 12) have been adapted to meet some of the requirements of the DDA legislation to assist less able guests. The rooms are configured to:

Room 1 - Family (1x double and 1x single) with en-suite shower room

Room 2 - Twin with en-suite shower room

Room 3 - Twin with en-suite shower room

Room 4 - Double with en-suite bathroom with shower over bath

Room 5 - Twin with en-suite shower room

Room 7 - Family (1x double and 1x single) with en-suite bathroom with shower over bath

Room 8 - Twin with en-suite shower room

Room 9 - Twin with en-suite shower room

Room 11 - Twin with en-suite bathroom with shower over bath

Room 12 - Double with en-suite bathroom with shower

SERVICE AREAS

Off the lounge bar is the still room where there is storage and a preparation area. This leads to a rear corridor that gives access to the kitchen, pot wash and preparation area, and dry goods store. Along a short corridor is a further store with a walk-in chiller and Freezer. A further general store leads to the chilled cellar. The kitchen is modern and spacious, being capable of a high level of food production. To the external elements is a spacious laundry. Throughout there is ample storage.

OWNERS ACCOMMODATION

A most attractive feature of this sale is the private and spacious owners flat which extends to 3 bedrooms plus a further office / study. The house has private access from the front entrance on the ground floor. Up the stairs is a spacious hallway providing access to the lounge, kitchen and the family bathroom plus all 3 bedrooms.

EXTERNAL AREAS

The business has a spacious car park which can accommodate up to 40 cars. To the front aspects there is an attractive beer garden set to bench tables. There is an area of ground to the side of the property which offers development potential depending on new owners' requirements and subject to consents. Currently the vendors allow campervans to park on this area subject to the condition that they use the motels facilities.

SERVICES

The business benefits from mains electricity, water and drainage. The building has HPO gas tanks for gas-fired central heating and uses LPG gas for cooking. The building is mainly double glazed. The premises are fully compliant with Environmental Health and Fire Regulations with the letting bedroom area benefitting from a new and modern zonal fire system.