Center Parcs UK and Ireland has been put up for sale for a reported £4bn to £5bn, nearly double what it was first bought for just eight years ago.

It follows a story reported by Sky News last year that Barclays had been appointed to advise on the future of the upmarket holiday villages.

The chain of six Center Parcs locations in the UK and Ireland is owned by Canadian private equity group Brookfield Property Partners. It was bought for £2.4bn in 2015.

If a sale goes through, it would be one of the biggest property deals of the year.

Center Parcs is one of the most famous British leisure brands, attracting millions of visitors annually to its five UK sites and one Irish location in Longford.

At the end of last year, Center Parcs reported occupancy rates of 97.3%, in line with pre-COVID levels.

The company booked revenue of £426.6m between April and December 2022, up 20% on 2021, and an 18% increase the 2019 pre-pandemic year.

The sites offer a mix of adventure and leisure activities for families, such as watersports and horse riding, as well as spa packages.

Read more on Sky News:
Investigation into whether shoppers being overcharged for food and fuel
Top economist regrets urging people to accept they are poorer

Be the first to get Breaking News

Install the Sky News app for free

The first site was opened in the UK in 1987 at Sherwood Forest, Nottinghamshire.

Other UK locations are Elveden Forest in Suffolk; Longleat Forest in Wiltshire; Whinfell Forest in Cumbria; and Woburn Forest in Bedfordshire.

Earlier this year Center Parcs announced it was pulling out of plans to develop a new holiday village in Crawley, West Sussex, following “rigorous environmental and ecological site surveys”.

The UK and Ireland operations are separately owned by Center Parcs in Europe which also trades under the brand.

Center Parcs and Brookfield declined to comment.

Related posts:

Uber loses Supreme Court battle on drivers’ rights in gig economy test Business rates review to be delayed until economic situation is clearer Amazon moves to defend UK tax contribution after bonanza COVID crisis sales Boeing board to face investor lawsuit over 737 MAX oversight ‘lies’ before crashes One in ten firms passing on higher prices to customers as cost of living pressures build Real wages effectively flatlined in lost decade of growth – but there’s a glimmer of light JD Sports says car park meeting not suspicious after footage published Tesla shares fall after Elon Musk’s plan to offload 10% of his stock is backed by Twitter users Wealth manager Succession joins industry deal rush with £400m sale plan Former outsourcing giant Interserve seals £735m Aviva pension deal Swiss government to hold news conference on Credit Suisse after UBS takeover offer Unemployment rate grows, the rise of AI and the future of digital currencies