AUGUST 25, 2008. During the first half of 2008, Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express signed a combined 203 hotels (24,327 rooms) globally - continuing the momentum from a record year in 2007 when the brands signed a combined 524 deals (63,431 rooms).

The great majority of these signings will be new build properties. The Holiday Inn brand family increased its combined global development pipeline to more than 133,000 rooms (1,121 hotels).

"The number of signings for full-service Holiday Inn hotels has been tremendous and is a testament to the strength of the brand, its viable position in the marketplace and its value proposition for owners," said Jim Anhut, senior vice president, Franchise Development, the Americas, IHG. "The Holiday Inn relaunch focuses on the things that matter most to customers when they think about quality - great beds, great showers and fantastic down-to-earth service with a more up-to-date look and owners love its impact and what it means for their hotels.'

Since being relaunched in October 2007, Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express have experienced strong growth as customer and owner feedback has continued to be extremely positive. The Holiday Inn brand family has signed more than 45,000 rooms (365 hotels) since the relaunch.

"The relaunch of the Holiday Inn brand has been a good business proposition for me to help solidify marketshare in a competitive market," said Kal Patel, president, Image Hotels, Inc., a hotel management & development company and owner of the Holiday Inn Savannah-Pooler, Ga. "The relaunch has reinvigorated the brand and reminds guests of the history that they have had with Holiday Inn."

During the first half of 2008, the Holiday Inn brand family opened a net 9,380 rooms (92 hotels) in the Americas, including hotels in New York City, Los Angeles, Oakland, Calif., Jacksonville Beach, Fla., Indianapolis, Ind., Louisville, Ky. and Wichita Falls, Texas. Around the world, Holiday Inn is opening a hotel a day and signing two while Holiday Inn Express continues to be one of the fastest growing hotel brands in the industry, opening an average of two hotels per week.

Combined, Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express have 416,975 rooms (3,223 hotels) open worldwide. In the Americas region alone, the brands have a combined total of 314,067 rooms (2,593 hotels) in the system.