Holiday Inn returns to Chennai, India's third largest City
	� New-build 200-room, 75-suite Holiday Inn to open in Chennai's Estancia Integrated Township in 2011
IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) is bringing its award-winning globally recognised Holiday Inn brand back to Chennai, India's third largest city and where India's first Holiday Inn hotel was established 35 years ago, in 1973. Holiday Inn Estancia Chennai, a brand new 200-room, 75-suite hotel, will be developed by leading India-based construction and engineering company L&T Arun Excello Commercial Projects Ltd and managed by IHG. The hotel will be part of the 82-acre Estancia Integrated Township, a mixed use development with a technology park earmarked as a special economic zone. Scheduled to open in 2011, the hotel is developed at an investment of US$35 million. The Estancia Integrated Township is being jointly developed by L&T Urban Infrastructure Ltd and the Arun Excello Group of Companies. Features include a residential zone with 1,900 apartments, a 3,000,000 square feet technology park, a retail mall with multiplex and a school. The entire project is designed by RMJM, a leading US architectural firm. The township is located 35 kilometres south of Chennai's city centre, along the National Highway 45 with easy access to the international airport and suburban railway network. Story continues below ↓ Advertisement Leisure travellers will also be able to enjoy Holiday Inn Estancia Chennai's proximity to Mahabalipuram, a UNESCO-listed 7th century port city famous for its ancient temples and sculptures. Gary Rosen, Senior Vice President, Sales & Marketing, IHG Asia Pacific, said: "IHG is proud to raise the Holiday Inn flag again in Chennai. In the Indian hospitality sector, we see enormous opportunity for growth in the mid-market segment, and Holiday Inn is the world's leading mid-market hotel brand. Chennai's economic growth is fuelled by the development of special economic zones such as the Estancia Integrated Township. Holiday Inn Estancia Chennai will be uniquely positioned to cater to the needs of both business and leisure travellers. This signing with L&T Arun Excello Commercial Projects Ltd reinforces IHG's aggressive portfolio growth across India and further strengthens our long-term commitment to the Indian market." Holiday Inn Estancia Chennai will add to IHG's pipeline of 14 other Holiday Inn hotels in various stages of development across the country. Accounting for close to 4,000 rooms, these new Holiday Inn hotels are scheduled to open over the next three years in 12 cities nationwide. P. Suresh, Managing Director, Arun Excello Group of Companies, said: "The unique location of Holiday Inn Estancia Chennai, within the Estancia Integrated Township, will provide an excellent opportunity to attract a wide range of travellers. This partnership with IHG combines our experience in property development with IHG's strength in hotel management, which will ensure the long-term success of Holiday Inn Estancia Chennai." In the 2007 BDRC Asia Pacific Business Hotel Guest Survey, Holiday Inn was the top midscale hotel choice among business travellers in India and across Asia Pacific. Holiday Inn is one of the world's largest hotel brands with close to 3,000 hotels globally and over 100 hotels across Asia Pacific. It is also one the world's fastest growing brands with 365 hotels in the global pipeline. In late 2007, IHG announced a worldwide US$1 billion relaunch for all its 3,125 Holiday Inns worldwide, which will ensure the brand maintains its leadership position. The relaunch incorporates insights from IHG's extensive consumer research, which gathered output from 18,000 travellers globally. IHG has an existing portfolio of 13 hotels in India and a robust pipeline of 21 hotels (more than 5,000) rooms under the InterContinental, Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn brands. IHG's Priority Club Rewards, the world's largest hotel loyalty programme with 37 million members worldwide, recently welcomed Jet Airways of India as its newest member.