Market entry: Comfort Hotels start business in the Czech Republic

Choice Hotels, one of the world’s largest hotel chains, is expanding the European brand presence of Comfort Hotels. In tandem with its longstanding franchise partner CPI Hotels it is opening three hotels in the Czech cities of Olomouc, Ústí nad Labem and Prague. In addition a multiple development agreement has been signed to open five more hotels. Choice Hotels is already present with hotels in the Czech hotel market under the Clarion brand. “We are absolutely delighted that we will now be striving to extend our success story with CPI Hotels with the Comfort brand“, notes Georg Schlegel, Managing Director of Choice Hotels Germany and Central Europe, of the expansion of the group’s portfolio. And Jan Kratina, CEO and Chairman of the Board of CPI Hotels adds: “The extension of the brand to include Comfort is the ideal response to increasing guest diversity. The potential for the globally established Comfort brand is enormous.“ In CPI Hotels, Choice Hotels has an exclusive partner for the Czech Republic with 20 years’ experience with the Choice franchise model. The portfolio currently comprises of nine Clarion brand hotels with capacity of around 1,600 rooms. The 559-room Clarion Congress Hotel Prague is currently undergoing extensive refurbishment, as well as Clarion Congress Hotel Ceske Budejovice which is planned to have new conference center for more than 800 delegates and extension of current accommodation operations.

First openings in April and June The first establishment to open its doors in April is the Comfort Hotel Olomouc Centre. This 89-room hotel is the second Choice Hotel in Olomouc and will be operated by CPI Hotels along with the Clarion Congress Hotel Olomouc. Next to open its doors in June 2018 will be the 86-room Comfort Hotel Usti nad Labem City, which has been undergoing partial renovation for around 18 months while remaining open for business. There is also a second Choice Hotel located in Ústí nad Labem, a Clarion property. The third Comfort hotel is the 243-room Comfort Hotel in Prague, which is scheduled to open in early 2020 after extensive renovations. It is in an excellent business location, close to the city centre. Downtown Prague can also be reached in just 15 minutes. Balanced growth of the company’s European brands Choice Hotels’ brand portfolio is constantly expanding in Europe. Following steady growth of the co-brands Star Inn Hotel, by Comfort and Star Inn Hotel Premium, by Quality, Choice Hotels recently announced the entry of the Ascend Hotel Collection boutique brand into the German market with the V8 Hotel @Motorworld in Cologne (Opening in August 2018). Meanwhile, the Clarion brand also recently confirmed four new establishments in the UK. There will be more additions coming up in the next months in Germany: the Quality Hotel, Star Inn Premium in Heidelberg and the Comfort Hotel Monheim which are scheduled to open its doors in April and May. For further information on the Group’s hotels please visit www.ChoiceHotels.de and www.ChoiceHotels.com.