Choice Hotels to open 20 new hotels in two years

Budget hotel chain Choice Hotels India plans to open
20 new hotels adding about 1500 rooms across India, with an estimated
budget of around Rs 600 crore in the next two years.

The hotel chain has signed management contracts with real estate developers
for opening 20 hotels across the country, taking the total to 45.

"Recently we have signed agreements for another 20 hotels, which
are presently under various stages of construction and will become operational
by the end of 2010," Choice Hotels India (CHI) Chief Executive
Officer Vilas Pawar told reporters.

When asked about investments Pawar said, the property development cost
would be borne by various real estate partners but the overall project
cost could be about Rs 600 crore.

"As par the agreement, we would operate the hotels constructed
by our partners," Pawar said.

CHI is also increasing its manpower to 4,500 from present 2,500 as
the total number of rooms managed by it would also reach up to 4,000
in the next two years.

Out of the proposed 20 hotels in the future, the company would operate
three in the National Capital Region and five in Punjab.

The company currently operates four brands of hotels: Clarions, Quality,
Comfort and Sleep in India in the three-star category.

CHI is part of Choice Hotels International, leading lodging franchiser
globally with over 5,000 hotels worldwide.

Photo: India – Sights & Culture – Flowers in a hotel lobby (2281756238) by McKay Savage from London, UK, licensed under CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.