Fforest to open The Albion in Cardigan
Outdoor lifestyle brand fforest is set to open its first hotel this August, reviving a pair of Grade II listed former warehouses in Cardigan, Wales. Themed around the town’s maritime past and the local legend of Albion, a ship that sailed 180 passengers from Cardigan to Canada in 1819, the property will provide a permanent legacy of the voyage.
Overlooking the River Teifi waterfront in West Wales, The Albion is to be launched in two phases, the first of which will include 12 guestrooms in the Bridge warehouse. During the second phase, scheduled for completion in Spring 2023, a further 11 rooms and family suites are to be introduced to the Granary warehouse building. All rooms have been designed around the existing features, restoring the structure to heritage standards while honouring the original emigrants by taking room names from a log of the settlers in New Brunswick.
The interiors will also be designed around the theme of ships cabins, but much more luxurious than the conditions that the Albion voyagers would have experienced two centuries ago. As such, the spaces are lined entirely in wood panelling and this, together with most furnishings, has been repurposed and fashioned from reclaimed timber in fforest’s own workshops, whilst 150-year-old beams make up the flooring. Another highlight is the historic graffiti – dating back to the second half of the 19th century – etched into the original limewash walls of the third floor, with pencil sketches that depict tall ships, signatures, calculations for rope and sail cloth.
Other local touches include Welsh wool blankets, cushions and bedhead covers made from 100% pure new wool, woven just upstream from the Albion at an old mill called Melin Teifi; the mill used to be powered by the same waters that run into the river Teifi, and past the Albion before heading out to the sea. The textile motifs meanwhile are based on traditional designs, but bespoke to fforest, designs are perfected over 15 years with local craft legends. The bedding is certified British wool duvets sourced from Devon Duvets – the first bedding company in the UK to achieve accreditation from British Wool. The blankets, textiles, socks, knitwear and enamel tableware in rooms are all also available to purchase.
Albion’s reception features a lounge area with relaxed seating and The Galley cocktail bar, which will be open to the public and have a slate flagged riverside courtyard. The first floor meanwhile has a guests-only lounge/workroom, which will also serve breakfast prior to the restaurant opening later in the year. Yr Odyn (The Kiln in English) is named after the remnants of the Lime Kilns forming part of the wharf complex and will launch this autumn, serving the best of local and seasonal cuisine – including meat from animals reared at fforest farm – with an emphasis on cooking over fire and influences from Scandinavia and Japan. An announcement on the Head Chef is to follow soon.
More features to come include an outdoor sauna and onsen – a Japanese inspired bathing facility that fforest farm is known for – in a private, elevated woodland glade housed discreetly behind the hotel. The venue is planned for December 2022 and will include skincare products from amenities partner Aesop, whose fragrances are to scent the communal spaces. Uniforms for the staff meanwhile have been designed in collaboration with Neem, a climate conscious brand producing workwear shirts made from recycled shirts.
“This has been a real passion project of mine over the pandemic,” says James Lynch, Founder of fforest and Chief Designer for The Albion. “With funding from the Development Bank of Wales, the ambition was to restore the existing building; to emphasise its heritage qualities, its original and unique features, then design and craft spaces within the open floors that would embrace and complement those qualities. To fold rooms into the shell created, that deliver on comfort and beauty as standard, but make every stay a special experience of its own. Contemporary services, comfort and style with the particular qualities of these heritage buildings: historic, high quality, unique; the essence of place, and of history, embedded in the fabric. We have a mantra at fforest for the accommodation and experience we provide: Warmth, Craft and Comfort. To the Albion we can add Heritage.”
Richard Easton, Portfolio Executive at the Development Bank of Wales, comments: “Working with our colleagues in Welsh Government, we are working hard to fund projects that help to boost our vital tourism and hospitality sectors in Wales. Our continued support for James and the wider team at fforest is a reflection of our belief in their business and the opportunities that they are bringing to Cardigan. Their creativity combined with business acumen means that they have made a long-lasting impact in the local community, creating much needed jobs and putting Cardigan firmly on the map.”
