LONDON, Dec. 17, 2010- Thistle Hotels has announced the appointment of Paul Knightley as general manager of the four star Thistle Kensington Gardens. Already an established general manager within the Thistle group, Knightley makes the move from its Hyde Park property to oversee the multi-million pound refurbishment of Thistle Kensington Gardens.

Knightley has worked for Thistle for over 10 years and progressed through several roles in the business, starting as a trainee in the finance department and working his way up to his current role as general manager. In this new role, he will be responsible for taking Thistle Kensington Gardens through its multi-million pound refurbishment and re-launching it to the London market.

The significant investment will transform the hotel into a relaxing and stylish base for business and leisure guests. With all deluxe and executive rooms overlooking Hyde Park, guests can enjoy the luxury of outstanding views while just being a short distance from London's bustling West End. 

The enhancement includes all of the hotel's public rooms – the entrance, restaurant, bar and reception – and its 175 bedrooms. The project is already fully underway with the entrance, bar, restaurant and two floors due to be completed in the first week of December. The remaining floors will be refurbished throughout the first half of next year with completion expected in August 2011.  

Paul commented: "This is an exciting time for Thistle Kensington Gardens and I'm delighted to be given the opportunity to oversee the hotel's transformation into a contemporary base for visitors to London. I'm looking forward to catapulting the hotel into a new chapter and revealing its new identity to guests."

Simon Farr, regional operations director, Thistle Hotels, added: "We're investing significantly in the refurbishment of Thistle Kensington Gardens, transforming it into a stylish London destination. It is ideally located for business and leisure travellers wanting to be near to the city centre, without being deep in the hustle and bustle and this refurbishment will help firmly position Thistle as a force in London's business and leisure sector, placing it firmly on the London map."

The refurbishment of Thistle Kensington Gardens is further evidence of Thistle's ongoing and significant investment in its properties. Since 2008, Thistle has invested pounds Sterling 100 million, transforming its entire portfolio into modernised, individual properties with a contemporary look and feel.

About Thistle:
Thistle Hotels is part of Guoman Hotel Management (UK) Limited which operates a number of UK Hotels. Thistle has 33 hotels across the country, many in superb city centre locations, including eleven London Hotels which include hotels near Hyde Park, Olympic hotels and Kensington hotels With a selection of restaurants and a choice of excellent health and leisure facilities, Thistle has something to offer everyone.

Thistle Hotels is the first hotel group to achieve Hospitality Assured accreditation, across its entire UK portfolio. Created by the Institute of Hospitality, the Hospitality Assured standard measures the quality within customer facing businesses across the hospitality, tourism and leisure industry.