CHOICE HOTELS SUPPORTS RENEWED CARIBBEAN BRANDING EFFORTS
ST. KITTS (October 13, 2012) – Voicing support for the re-launching of the Caribbean regional brand as a single destination, Jose Salvador Icaza, Director of Membership Development, Caribbean for Choice Hotels International (NYSE: CHH) urged smaller hotels to also consider branding options to increase their visibility and operational efficiency in a highly competitive marketplace.
Lauding this week’s Caribbean Tourism Organization State of the Industry conference in St. Kitts in the West Indies, held under the theme “Developing a Winning Tourism Strategy,” Icaza confirmed the Caribbean remains a highly desirable destination, and will continue to be a destination of choice for travelers.
“We wholeheartedly support pronouncements made by regional leaders this week to promote the diversity of the region under one brand,” stated Icaza.
But, he urged hotels and resorts – especially some of the smaller ones who are struggling to keep their heads above water – to examine the benefits of selective branding and options which help them retain their uniqueness and charm while expanding their reach.
Icaza pointed to one such product being offered by Choice Hotels International – the Ascend Hotel Collection membership program. The upscale affiliation, he added, offers Caribbean hotels access to a powerful reservations system and robust marketing without abandoning their unique, historic or boutique identities.
Choice Hotels, one of the world’s largest hotel franchisors, is the franchisor for eight hotels in the Caribbean islands of the Bahamas, Curaçao, Grand Cayman and Puerto Rico. The company currently has projects under development in Anguilla, Dominica and Haiti and is in the final stages of negotiation to award a franchise to a hotel development in St. Maarten in the Dutch West Indies.
About Choice Hotels
Choice Hotels International, Inc. franchises approximately 6,200 hotels, representing more than 495,000 rooms, in the United States and more than 30 other countries and territories. As of June 30, 2012, more than 375 hotels were under construction, awaiting conversion or approved for development in the United States, representing more than 30,000 rooms, and approximately 75 hotels, representing approximately 6,700 rooms, were under construction, awaiting conversion or approved for development in approximately 15 other countries and territories.
The company’s Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality, Sleep Inn, Clarion, Cambria Suites, MainStay Suites, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, Econo Lodge and Rodeway Inn brands, as well as its Ascend Hotel Collection membership program, serve guests worldwide.
Additional corporate information may be found on the Choice Hotels International, Inc. website, which may be accessed at www.choicehotels.com.
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Choice Hotels, Choice Hotels International, Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality, Sleep Inn, Clarion, Cambria Suites, MainStay Suites, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, Econo Lodge, Rodeway Inn and Ascend Hotel Collection are proprietary trademarks and service marks of Choice Hotels International.
© 2012 Choice Hotels International, Inc. All rights reserved.