21st Feb 2007 21:16
IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) (LSE:IHG) (NYSE:IHG) (ADRs),the world's largest hotel group by number of rooms, today announcedthe groundbreaking of the Holiday Inn Express San Jose - Forum in SanJose, Costa Rica, the first Holiday Inn Express in Central America andthe third IHG property in the country. £ The hotel, which has a projected completion date set for mid March2008 will be owned by Prime Holding under a license agreement with acompany in the InterContinental Hotels Group and will be located inthe metropolitan city of San Jose -- the capital and largest city ofCosta Rica. £ The 100-room Holiday Inn Express San Jose - Forum will be situatedin the one of the fastest developing areas called Santa Ana next to amajor thoroughfare that connects to Escazu, the prominent residentialand business district of the city. Surrounded by a major commercialcomplex that features two shopping centers with retail stores,boutiques and restaurants, the Holiday Inn Express San Jose - Forum,will also be only 15 minutes away from the Juan Santamaria Airport andwithin walking distance to Forum Business Park I and II, the city'slatest and most upscale office tower complexes. £ Located at Diagonal al Centro Empresarial Forum 2, the three-storyHoliday Inn Express San Jose - Forum will have meeting roomfacilities, a fully equipped business center, an outdoor swimming pooland a fitness room. £ "Breaking ground with IHG's first Holiday Inn Express brandedhotel in Central America, makes our role in the region much moresignificant as it allows us to contribute to the region's dynamictourism industry and vibrant development," says Alvaro Diago, AreaPresident of IHG Latin America. "We already have two IHG brand hotelsin the country: the Real InterContinental Costa Rica and the HolidayInn San Jose - Aurola, and we are thrilled of this exciting newaddition to our portfolio in Costa Rica. I am confident that travelerswill fully welcome the Holiday Inn Express San Jose - Forum." £ Catering to a variety of tourists and business travelers alike,San Jose offers a wide array of activities and leisure attractionsthat include museums, art galleries, theaters, and nightlife venuessuch as clubs, restaurants, and shops. Costa Rica is known as the mosttechnologically advanced and politically stable nation in CentralAmerica with the largest middle class. Additionally, tourism hasbecome the nation's true principal source of income, surpassing bothcattle ranching and exports of coffee, pineapples, and bananas, aswell has become a source of new jobs and opportunities for economicadvancement. Costa Rica has always been and continues to be a favoritedestination for many travelers abroad. £ "We are very excited about developing the first Holiday InnExpress in the Central America region; the brand's concept, look andfeel ideally fits the needs of many travelers' today. Additionally, welook forward to our prestigious partnership with IHG and to developingmore hotels together in the future," says Luis Fernandez, President ofPrime Holding. £ The Holiday Inn Express brand has rapidly developed into one ofthe world's most preferred hotel brands. A young brand, by globalhotel standards, Holiday Inn Express has been offering comfort, valueand convenience to international business and pleasure travelers sinceits inception in 1991. £ In a short 16 years, the Holiday Inn Express has grown to over1,600 hotels throughout the world, and is the fastest growing of theHoliday Inn hotel brands, of which there are 14 hotels currently foundin Latin America. £ Over the past months IHG has opened three Holiday Inn Expressproperties in Brazil, and one in Puerto Montt, Chile. IHG alsoannounced the groundbreaking of the Holiday Inn Express Santo Domingoin the Dominican Republic. Slated to open in 2007 are the Holiday InnExpress Medellin, Colombia and the Holiday Inn Express Quito, Ecuador. £ IHG has more than 160 hotels in Mexico, Central and South Americaas the well as the Caribbean, and has been serving Latin America forover 60 years. IHG is one of the leading hotel companies in the world,and the second largest hotel operator in Latin America. IHG has hotelssituated in nearly every key market in the Latin America territory. £ Note to Editors: £ InterContinental Hotels Group PLC of the United Kingdom (LSE:IHG)(NYSE:IHG) (ADRs) is the world's largest hotel group by number ofrooms. InterContinental Hotels Group owns, manages, leases orfranchises, through various subsidiaries, over 3,700 hotels and556,000 guest rooms in nearly 100 countries and territories around theworld. The Group owns a portfolio of well recognized and respectedhotel brands including InterContinental(R) Hotels & Resorts, CrownePlaza(R) Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn(R) Hotels and Resorts, HolidayInn Express(R), Staybridge Suites(R), Candlewood Suites(R) and HotelIndigo(R), and also manages the world's largest hotel loyalty program,Priority Club(R) Rewards. £ InterContinental Hotels Group offers information and onlinereservations for all its hotel brands at www.ihg.com and informationor the Priority Club Rewards program at www.priorityclub.com. £ For the latest news from InterContinental Hotels Group, visit ouronline Press Office at www.ihg.com/media. Copyright Business Wire 2007Related Shares:
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