Originally known as Coldra House, the stately home that became the original Celtic Manor Hotel (now The Manor House) dates from the mid-19th Century.

It was the home of Thomas Powell Jnr, the son of a leading figure in the coal and iron trade.

Now owned by Sir John Beynon, the house was given to the local health authority, and on 1st January, 1940, it opened as the Lydia Beynon Maternity Hospital, in memory of his mother.

Over the next 35 years, more than 60,000 babies were to be born there – with many subsequently using the hotel for their wedding receptions!

The Lydia Beynon closed in 1975 and lay boarded up for five years until Celtic Inns became the owner and obtained planning permission to build a 17-bedroom hotel which opened in 1982.

The Celtic Manor was an instant success, winning the Egon Ronay award for the best hotel in Wales in five consecutive years from 1983 to 1987.

The first championship golf course opens at Celtic Manor, the Roman Road designed by Robert Trent Jones.

The Lodge clubhouse (now the Celtic Manor Golf Club) opened at the same time before the Golf Academy and Coldra Woods executive course followed a year later.

The Manor House had grown from 17 to 70 bedrooms but that expansion was as nothing compared to the building of a new five-star Resort Hotel which boasted 330 bedrooms, luxury spa and a state-of-the-art convention centre for 1,500 delegates. A second championship golf course – Wentwood Hills – opened the same year.

Celtic Manor stages the Wales Open on The European Tour (now the DP World Tour) for the first time.

Winners of the event include Ryder Cup stars Alex Noren, Graeme McDowell, Robert Karlsson, Miguel Angel Jiménez, Ian Poulter, Paul Lawrie and Paul McGinley and the Cazoo Open is now supported by Welsh football superstar Gareth Bale.

Celtic Manor hosts the European Union Foreign Ministers’ Summit.

Also at this time, The Roman Road Course stages the All*Star Cup, a celebrity version of the Ryder Cup. Participants included Michael Douglas, Catherine Zeta Jones, Alice Cooper, Meatloaf, Jane Seymour and Chris Evans.

The Twenty Ten Course opens as the first in history purpose built to stage The Ryder Cup, along with a new clubhouse and a third championship course, The Montgomerie.

Celtic Manor stages the first Ryder Cup ever played in Wales and watched by 45,000 spectators a day and countless millions on TV around the world.

Graeme McDowell, the Wales Open champion at Celtic Manor earlier in the summer, clinched the winning point for Europe in the most dramatic fashion to spark joyous celebrations.

Resort stages Polo at the Manor for the first time, bringing a new sport and lifestyle event to the Usk Valley.

New family activities – Adventure Golf and Forest Jump ropes courses – are also launched.

Celtic Manor stages the Celebrity Cup for the first time, evoking memories of the All*Star Cup by bringing stars of sport and showbiz together for a four nations golf tournament between England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales on the Roman Road Course.

Celtic Manor hosts the NATO Summit, the largest gathering of world leaders ever held in the UK and the first time a serving US President had visited Wales.

Celtic Manor acquires neighbouring 148-bedroom hotel and renames it Coldra Court Hotel by Celtic Manor, embarking on a £2m refurbishment programme.

The Celtic Collection brand is established and a new Tŷ hotel brand is launched following the acquisition of the former Hampton by Hilton with 129 bedrooms at Magor.

The International Convention Centre Wales (ICC Wales) opens in a joint venture partnership with Welsh Government. World-class facilities include a 4,000 sq m pillar-free exhibition hall, a 1,500-seat auditorium, versatile meeting rooms and an abundance of breakout and networking spaces, flooded in natural daylight.

The Celtic Collection opens the The Parkgate Hotel with 169 bedrooms in Cardiff in partnership with the Welsh Rugby Union.

The Celtic Collection opens the 100-bedroom Tŷ Hotel Milford Waterfront in Pembrokeshire in partnership with the Port of Milford Haven.

Tŷ Newport Opens
The Tŷ Hotels family grows with the welcome addition of Tŷ Newport, the first all electric hotel in Wales opened in May. Located just off Junction 24 of the M4 Motorway, offering excellent transport links, 146 stylish rooms, meeting room and Mediterranean inspired dining at Casa Kitchen & Bar.

St Brides Spa Hotel Joins The Celtic Collection
The popular and well-established St Brides Spa Hotel joins The Celtic Collection. In partnership with the hotel’s new owner, Port of Milford Haven, we will be overseeing the management and operation of the iconic Pembrokeshire spa hotel.

Improved Biodiversity
In our continuous effort to make sustainability part of our everyday, we introduced 5 hives housing 175,000 honeybees to the Celtic Manor Resort estate. Working with experts from Llangattock Apiaries, our aim is to improve the local biodiversity as these busy bees help pollinate the surrounding trees and wildflowers. Our hives are in secure and secluded locations surrounded by undisturbed, natural hedgerows and landscape.

Celtic Manor Celebrates 25 Years
The signature resort of The Celtic Collection marked its silver jubilee in 2024. To celebrate, The Celtic Manor hosted a wide array of events and offers to mark the occasion – culminating in a rooftop terrace party with delicious food stalls, prizes and a live band. As The Celtic Manor proudly boasts 25 years of making memories alongside sister hotels that have opened in the meantime, the Collection team continues its aspirations to make the brand grow ever larger and more exceptional over the next quarter-century.