ONE of Falmouth’s most prominent hotels is looking to create 21 extra bedrooms and upgrade its dining and leisure facilities, including building an outdoor swimming pool.

The four star Royal Duchy Hotel in Cliff Road, which commands views out across Falmouth Bay, has applied for planning permission to make improvements and build extensions as part of a “significant investment.”

The plans include extending the number of bedrooms from 44, plus three staff, to 65, plus five staff. This will be achieved by combining existing smaller bedrooms and creating more superior suites with a greater emphasis on maximising views.

Existing garage and storage space to the rear is to be removed and replaced with two stories of bedroom accommodation, new stairs and a lift. Beneath this will be five “much needed” staff bedrooms, a staff room and a reconfigured laundry.

The existing flat roofed lounge bar will be extended and shaped to “complement and enhance” the existing turreted architectural features of the hotel. The landscaped gardens to the front of the hotel will be upgraded and a new outside swimming pool and paved area introduced.

It is also proposed to create an additional 22 car parking spaces.

In support of the application, ALA Architects, have said: “The proposals being put forward have been carefully considered to show respect to both the existing hotel, immediate neighbours and indeed the wider Falmouth conservation area.”