21 May 2013

Holiday Inn Express® Manhattan West Side Opens Close to Popular New York City Attractions

New 11-Story Hotel Located in Heart of Midtown Neighborhood

ATLANTA - InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG)[LON: IHG, NYSE: IHG (ADRs)] one of the world’s leading global hotel companies announces the opening of the new Holiday Inn Express® Manhattan West Side, conveniently located near the Broadway Theater District, Times Square and a short walk from the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center.

The new 177-room hotel in the midtown west Manhattan area, at 538 West 48th St., is the closest hotel to the Manhattan Cruise Terminal. It is also near the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum Complex, featuring the space shuttle Enterprise, and the New York offices of several major corporations. The hotel offers guests a complimentary area shuttle service, and complimentary bottled water in each room.

"Holiday Inn Express hotels are designed to be the smart choice for value-conscious business and leisure travelers," said Heather Balsley, senior vice president, Brand Management, Holiday Inn brand family, The Americas, IHG.  "With more than 2,100 properties worldwide and 450 more in the pipeline, the Holiday Inn Express portfolio continues to provide our guests with an enhanced-stay experience at a great value.  We are proud to welcome this hotel into the Holiday Inn family with the brand-new sign and everything it represents.”

The new opening comes on the heels of the opening of the Holiday Inn Express – NYC Herald Square 36th Street earlier this year. With over 340 of the pipeline hotels in the Americas region alone, the Holiday Inn Express brand continues to innovate and grow, remaining a key focus for IHG. The new hotels are in line with the Holiday Inn brand family’s $1 billion global brand relaunch, the largest project of its kind in hospitality history. The relaunch continues to drive increased quality and consistency across the global portfolio. The hotel features a contemporary image with emphasis on arrival and welcome services, guestroom and guest bath comfort and a redesigned logo and signage.

“We’re pleased to be joining the Holiday Inn brand family and to be able to offer visitors looking for Manhattan hotels an outstanding guest experience at a great value in a convenient location,” said Lance Herman, general manager, Holiday Inn Express New York - Manhattan West Side. “Holiday Inn Express is a fresh brand that we believe fits well with the needs of visitors to Manhattan, whether they are here for business or leisure.”

The new hotel offers guests a comfortable, yet affordable stay with innovative, preferred-guest upgrades to ensure a pleasurable experience with amenities that include a 24-hour fitness center, complimentary high-speed Internet access and a business center with both Macintosh and PC computers. Business travelers will find large desks with ergonomic chairs, free local phone and toll free, phones with private voicemail and complimentary USA TODAY® newspapers.

The complimentary Express Start® breakfast bar features a full range of breakfast items, including a rotation of egg and meat selections, biscuits, yogurt, fruit, pancakes, the brand's proprietary cinnamon roll, and Smart Roast® coffee. Guest rooms will feature contemporary styling, a 32-inch HD flat screen TV, comfortable queen or king-sized beds, a sitting area with a lounge chair and an in-room coffee machine featuring complimentary Smart Roast 100% Arabica coffee. The SimplySmart™ shower incorporates a proprietary Stay Smart™ Kohler showerhead, signature shower curtain with curved rod, upgraded 100 percent cotton terry towels and a custom line of cinnamon-scented bath products.  Guests will enjoy the SimplySmart™ bedding collection, where they will find crisp fresh bedding that features an attractive decorative throw, a medium-weight duvet blanket and soft, 200 thread-count sheets.

The Holiday Inn Express – New York Manhattan West Side, owned by GLSC 48 Special LLC, and managed by the Gemini Hospitality Group, is franchised by an affiliate of IHG.  Reservations can be made by calling 1-800-HOLIDAY or by going to IHG.com/HolidayInnExpress.

Holiday Inn Express participates in IHG’s guest loyalty program, Priority Club® Rewards, soon to be named IHG® Rewards Club this July. The industry’s fast-growing guest loyalty program with 73 million members 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 4,600 hotels worldwide.

About Holiday Inn Express
Holiday Inn Express hotels are modern hotels for value-oriented travelers.  Fresh, clean and uncomplicated, Holiday Inn Express hotels offer competitive rates for both business and leisure travelers.  Guests Stay Smart® at Holiday Inn Express hotels where they enjoy a free hot Express Start® Breakfast Bar, free high-speed Internet access and free local phone calls (US and Canada only).  There are currently more than 2,100 Holiday Inn Express hotel locations around the globe.  For more information about Holiday Inn Express hotels or to book reservations, call 1-800-HOLIDAY or visit www.hiexpress.com.

Media Contacts:
Manjusha Sharma, IHG® , [email protected], +1(770) 604-8781
Sarah-Ann Soffer, Holiday Inn Express® Hotels, [email protected], +1(770) 604-2707

Notes to Editors:

IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) [LON:IHG, NYSE:IHG (ADRs)] is a global organization with nine hotel brands including InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Indigo®, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn® Hotels and Resorts, Holiday Inn Express®, Staybridge Suites®, Candlewood Suites®, EVEN™ Hotels and HUALUXE™ Hotels & Resorts. IHG also manages Priority Club® Rewards, the world’s first and largest hotel loyalty program with over 73 million members worldwide. The program will be renamed and relaunched as IHG Rewards Club in July 2013, offering enhanced benefits for members.

IHG franchises, leases, manages or owns over 4,600 hotels and more than 674,000 guest rooms in nearly 100 countries and territories. With more than 1,000 hotels in its development pipeline, IHG expects to recruit around 90,000 people into additional roles across its estate 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.

Visit www.ihg.com for hotel information and reservations and www.priorityclub.com for more on Priority Club Rewards. For our latest news, visit www.ihg.com/media,www.twitter.com/ihg, www.facebook.com/ihg or www.youtube.com/ihgplc.

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