Whitbread, the leisure group which owns the David Lloyd Leisure health clubs and Beefeater restaurants, has confirmed that it plans to sell its Marriott Hotels arm for around £1bn.

The sale – which is expected to take two years to complete – will see Whitbread establish a joint venture with Marriott International – the US-based group which owns the brand.

Whitbread will initially receive £710m in return for a 50 per cent stake in the 46-strong hotel portfolio.

Marriott will then take over the management of the hotels, while Whitbread will offload its remaining 50 per cent stake on a sale and manage-back deal within two years, as it said it aims to take advantage of the “continued upturn in the hotel cycle”.

Alan Parker, chief executive, said: “This sale completes the reshaping of our strategy. Last year, we invested £505m in acquiring Premier Lodge to create the budget chain Premier Travel Inn.”