Having opened its doors in 1999, the Vale Resort is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, starting a year’s worth of promotions commencing on the 2nd April.
The independent 4-star Vale Resort was built by the Leeke family and is made up of the 143-bedroom Vale Hotel, two championship golf courses, extensive leisure and sports facilities, Wales’s largest spa, extensive conference and events facilities, restaurants, bars and Hensol Castle, an exclusive wedding and events venue which also incorporates a distillery.
Set in 650 acres of Welsh countryside, the 18-hole Lake Course was built on a site that previously housed nothing more than a small cabin and was the first part of Vale Resort that opened to the public. The course itself was completed in October 1994, and by 1997 it was staging the PGA Wales and the West Championship. The leisure club followed, opening in October 1998, and the hotel itself opened in 1999.
Vale Resort is also home to the Welsh national rugby team and the Welsh national football team.
Over the past 25 years, the Vale Resort has:
- Accommodated more than 5 million guests
- Cleared over 35,000 barrels of alcohol
- Sir Steve Redgrave opened the Wales National Golf Course in June 2003
- Jilly Cooper launched her “Wicked” bestseller at a luncheon in November 2006
- Whilst Wembley stadium was being rebuilt and matches were played at the Millennium Stadium, the Vale Resort enjoyed a five-year reputation in the highest sporting circles as “the lucky hotel” with premiership football clubs, including Liverpool, fighting to make it their base
- In 2006, the Wales National course hosted the European Seniors
The Leeke family business dates all the way back to 1897, when James Henry Leeke opened a small ironmonger’s business in his front room in Tonypandy. Over the years, the family business has expanded and is now known as Leekes Retail and Leisure Group worth more than £80m, of which the Vale Resort is a major part.
To celebrate their 25th anniversary, the Vale Resort will be kicking off with 25 days of giveaways from April 2nd, with a different giveaway every day. A golf break and spa break are up for grabs, as are golf lessons, a gin-making experience at Hensol Castle Distillery, tickets to various events (such as Faulty Towers, the Bonfire Night fireworks display and Christmas parties), afternoon tea and personal training sessions.
To take part in the 25 days of giveaways (2nd – 26th April), people need to keep an eye on the Vale Resort’s social media channels – Facebook (@thevaleresort) and Instagram (@thevaleresort) – and react accordingly with the giveaway posts.
As well as this, the Vale Resort will also be offering monthly deals, such as afternoon tea, personal training sessions and twilight golf from £25 per person, 25% discounts across the spa and leisure club, as well as a two-course meal in the Vale Grill.
There will also be a 25-year anniversary dinner held at Vale Resort later in the year.
Stephen Leeke, Managing Director of the Vale Resort, commented:
“When I started at the Vale Resort in 1994, we had a portacabin, driving range and 9-hole golf course. My father, Gerald, had a love for sport and had a vision for a sporting hotel.
“It’s been the proverbial extension on the extension since then which has culminated in the world class facilities which you see today. Not only do we house the training bases for both Wales’s national rugby and football teams, but we can compete with the very best with our golf, leisure and business offering.
“The ground-breaking opening of the Grade-I listed Hensol Castle as a venue tailored for exclusive wedding and events, incorporating a craft distillery in the cellars, is - in the words of my father - “the icing on the cake” and the feedback from guests has been outstanding.
“It’s been very much a team effort along the way, and I’d like to thank our staff, members, guests, colleagues and our partners in the Welsh Rugby Union and Football Association of Wales for all they have done to contribute to our success.”
