06 April 2011

Two New Holiday Inns Open on the East and West Sides of Houston

Holiday Inn Houston Westchase and Holiday Inn Houston East Offers Convenience and Modern Amenities for Travelers

ATLANTA - IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) [LON: IHG, NYSE: IHG (ADRs)], the world's largest hotel group by number of rooms, today announces the opening of two new Holiday Inns on the east and west sides of Houston, designed to offer business and leisure travelers a state-of-the-art lodging experience by transforming guest rooms into places to relax and convenient work spaces for those on the go.

"We are thrilled to welcome the Holiday Inn Houston East and the Holiday Inn Houston Westchase to the Holiday Inn family of hotels," said Gina LaBarre, vice president, Brand Delivery, the Americas, IHG.  "Holiday Inn hotels are specifically designed for business and family oriented leisure travelers in need of a full-service lodging experience, and these hotels fit well within that offering."

The hotels reflect the successful completion of the $1 billion Holiday Inn global brand relaunch, the biggest ever project of its kind in the history of the hospitality industry. The relaunch includes a renewed focus on quality, improved arrival and welcome features, enhanced bedding and showers, a "Stay Real" service culture and a new and an up-to-date look, including a redesigned logo and signage.

On the west side of the city, the new Holiday Inn Houston Westchase features ultra-modern décor and lavish amenities. Situated in the Westchase business district, the hotel is close to major area businesses such as Halliburton, Chevron, Jacobs Engineering, ABB, Quest Diagnostics, the Toyota Center, Houston's premier sports and entertainment facility, and shopping. The hotel offers an indoor saltwater pool and an outdoor patio with a fire pit and relaxing water features, as well as a 24-hour fitness center.

The 130-room, five-story Holiday Inn Houston Westchase features 22 guest suites and 2,700 square feet of meeting space, including one ballroom that can accommodate 285 people, and two smaller meeting rooms. The hotel also includes a business center as well as a 24-hour fitness center. Complimentary high-speed wireless Internet service is available throughout the hotel.

The newest and most modern hotel on the eastside, the Holiday Inn Houston East, is conveniently located in the heart of East Houston, just off Interstate 10 near General Electric, Siemens and Harsco and less than a mile-and-a-half from the Port of Houston. Featuring the only indoor pool in the vicinity, the hotel includes a sauna, individual cabanas and a 24-hour exercise facility. 

With 111 rooms, including eight suites, the Holiday Inn Houston East offers banquet facilities and meeting space totaling more than 2,300 square feet, which can accommodate up to 240 people. Complimentary high-speed wireless Internet access is available throughout the hotel, which also features a 24-hour business center.

For convenient dining options, the Holiday Inn Houston East features the Time Out Sports Bar and Grill and the Holiday Inn Westchase offers the Sporting News Grill. Both are full-service restaurant facilities serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. The restaurants reflect the tastes of sports fans with specialty burgers, Choice Steaks and unique appetizers.  In keeping with the spirit of a sports bar, there is an extensive selection of beers available. The restaurants also offer Holiday Inn's Best-4-Breakfast® menu, and kids 12 and younger eat free when ordering from the kids' menu and accompanied by a dining adult. 

Guest beds at both hotels are made using crisp, white bedding with pillows that come in two comfort levels: "soft" and "firm." The bathrooms include a specially designed showerhead that offers superior pressure, as well as a signature shower curtain with curved rod and new amenities.

The residential design includes business-focused necessities like an ergonomic work station, data ports, complimentary USA TODAY® newspapers, complimentary high speed Internet access in guest rooms and WiFi capabilities, which allow guests to conduct conference calls for up to six participants even while using their computer online. In addition, each room has the standard Holiday Inn guestroom accommodations - comfortable double, queen or king-sized beds, a sitting area with a lounge chair, cable television, hairdryer, coffee maker, iron and ironing board. 

The Holiday Inn Westchase located at 10609 Westpark Dr., is owned by Versatile Hotels LLC and managed by Pika Management under a license agreement with a company in the InterContinental Hotels Group.

The Holiday Inn Houston East located at 16311 East Freeway in Channelview, is owned by Amir Khan and managed by Ashland Hospitality under a license agreement with a company in the InterContinental Hotels Group.

Holiday Inn Hotels and Resorts participate in IHG's guest loyalty program, Priority Club® Rewards, the industry's first and largest guest loyalty program with 56 million members.  Priority Club Rewards membership is free and guests can enroll by logging on at priorityclub.com, by calling 1-888-211-9874 or by inquiring at the front desk of this hotel or any of IHG's more than 4,400 hotels worldwide.

About Holiday Inn Hotels & Resorts
With over 1,200 hotels worldwide, Holiday Inn Hotels and Resorts is the most widely recognized lodging brand in the world.  In fact, Holiday Inn was one of the first international hotel brands to establish a presence in China in 1984. Holiday Inn Hotels and Resorts provides the services that business travelers need, while also offering a comfortable atmosphere where all people can relax and enjoy amenities such as restaurants and room service, swimming pools, fitness centers and comfortable lounges.  The casual atmosphere and amenities such as meeting and on-site business facilities, KidSuites rooms, Kids Eat and Stay Free programs demonstrate the long-standing commitment of Holiday Inn Hotels and Resorts to serving travelers and have helped to establish the brand as "America's Favorite Hotel."  For more information about Holiday Inn Hotels and Resorts, including IHG's new timeshare brand Holiday Inn Club Vacations, or to book reservations, call 1-800-HOLIDAY or visit http://www.holidayinn.com/

Media Contacts:
Sherry Telford, Holiday Inn, [email protected], +1(770) 604-2613
Sarah-Ann Soffer, Holiday Inn, [email protected], +1(770) 604-2707

Notes to Editors:

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) [LON:IHG, NYSE:IHG (ADRs)] is the world’s largest hotel group by number of rooms. IHG franchises, leases, manages or owns, through various subsidiaries, over 4,400 hotels and more than 640,000 guest rooms in 100 countries and territories around the world. The Group owns a portfolio of well recognized and respected hotel brands including InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Indigo®, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn® Hotels and Resorts, Holiday Inn Express®, Staybridge Suites® and Candlewood Suites® and also manages the world’s largest hotel loyalty program, Priority Club® Rewards with 56 million members worldwide.

IHG has almost 1,300 hotels in its development pipeline, which is expected to create 160,000 jobs worldwide over the next few years.

InterContinental Hotels Group PLC is the Group’s holding company and is incorporated in Great Britain and registered in England and Wales.

IHG offers information and online reservations for all its hotel brands at http://www.ihg.com/media and information for the Priority Club Rewards program at www.priorityclub.com. For our latest news visit www.ihg.com/media, Twitter www.twitter.com/ihgplc or YouTube http://www.youtube.com/ihgplc

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