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First new-look Holiday Inn hotel opens

Dubai, April 23, 2008

The first European Holiday Inn hotel has opened as part of the $1 billion global relaunch of the Holiday Inn brand family.

Eleven Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express hotels across Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) - plus 19 in the US and six across Asia Pacific - have been chosen to road-test the changes to the world’s biggest hotel brand, which includes new bedding, new shower experience and, for the first time, a signature scent and sound package.

The first two to open in Europe, both in the UK, are the Holiday Inn London Heathrow and the Holiday Inn Farnborough, said a spokesman for the InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG).

These will be followed by hotels in Germany, Italy, France, the UAE (Dubai), China, Thailand and Australia.

Following customer feedback and extensive staff training over the next few months, the hotels will be fully relaunched by July. Of the 19 hotels road-testing the changes in the US, 16 are already open, including hotels in New York, Washington and Los Angeles.

The first hotels will showcase the new brand hallmarks and signage in order to gather owner and guest feedback, prior to the full global roll-out, scheduled for completion by the end of 2010.

All Holiday Inn hotels will be required to implement the relaunch programme to create a more contemporary brand image, increase quality and drive consistency. The relaunch will incorporate new service standards, redesigned entrance and reception areas as well as refreshed guestrooms.  The new brand signage will be installed at hotels only once they have implemented the relaunch programme.


All 4,000 Holiday Inn hotels are expected to have implemented the relaunch programme by the end of 2010.

By better delivering on guest needs and expectations, IHG expects the relaunch programme to allow Holiday Inn hotels to generate significantly higher revenue per available room (RevPAR), and secure an enhanced return on investment for their owners.

Together with IHG, owners and franchisees will invest up to $1 billion over a three-year period to carry out the brand relaunch to meet the required service and quality levels. IHG will invest $60 million as part of this to support the launch.

“After all the meticulous planning and detailed dialogue with owners, it was a fantastic moment when the old Holiday Inn signage came down at both the London Heathrow and Farnborough Holiday Inns – and the new signage went up,” said president IHG EMEA Kirk Kinsell.

Established in 1952, Holiday Inn is one of the world’s most recognised hotel brands with more than 410,000 rooms (3,189 hotels) open and a development pipeline of more than 127,000 rooms (1,077 hotels). – TradeArabia News Service




Tags: hotels | Holiday | Inn |

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