InterContinental to extend hotel franchise offerings

IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group), one of the world's leading hotel companies, announced on Monday in Beijing that it will extend its franchise offerings in China to its upscale and midscale brands - Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Resort - further accelerating its growth in China.

The company has signed a strategic partnership with China Travel Service Hong Kong ltd (HK CTS), a State-owned leading tourism company to operate multiple hotels - and about 20 hotels in the pipeline - under a franchise model. Among those, IHG has signed the Holiday Inn Beijing Lido on a franchise contract. The hotel will be rebranded from HK CTS Hotels' Metropark Lido Hotel Beijing in late 2018.

IHG's existing Crowne Plaza Beijing Lido hotel will transfer from a managed to a franchise contract in early 2018. Both properties will be managed by Kew Green, a wholly owned subsidiary of HK CTS Hotels and one of IHG's largest partners in Europe. IHG has also granted a franchise license to another long-term partner in the country, Shanghai China Coal Mansion Co Ltd, for its existing Holiday Inn Shanghai Pudong property. The hotel will transfer from a managed to a franchise contract in early 2018.