HOLIDAY cottage agency Lyme Bay Holidays has been acquired by leading operator Sykes Holiday Cottages.

The Dorset-based company will operate as a sister agency to Sykes from its office on Uplyme Road in Lyme Regis.

Lyme Bay Holidays is an award-winning, family-run company which was established 40 years ago. The Matthews family have managed the company for more than 20 years.

The business manages more than 330 holiday homes throughout Dorset and Devon and employs 20 people locally, who will all remain in post.

Ben Matthews, managing director of Lyme Bay Holidays, said: “The deal represents a new chapter for the business, and I know with Sykes’ support we’ll be able to build on the company’s huge success over the past four decades."

Graham Donoghue, chief executive of Sykes Holiday Cottages, said: “It’s important to offer a local service with on-the-ground expertise and partnering with agencies like Lyme Bay Holidays allows us to do just that.

“By utilising our market-leading technology and making these holiday homes available to Sykes customers, we’ll help Lyme Bay’s property owners reap the rewards of the growing staycation trend with year-round bookings.

“With the support of our regional sister companies, we’re now the trusted custodian of 22,000 holiday properties throughout the UK and Ireland and two million travellers holiday with us each year.”

Founded 30 years ago, Sykes is one of the UK’s best-known travel brands with more than 22,000 properties available to book across the UK, Ireland, and New Zealand.

It has won the British Travel Award for Best Large Holiday Cottage Booking Company for eight consecutive years.