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Choice Hotels' News

Choice Hotels International Executives Address Delegates at Prestigious Americas Lodging Investment Summit (ALIS)
Choice Leaders Share Expertise and Insight On Franchising And The Extended Stay and Upscale Select Service Segments
PRNewswire-FirstCall
SILVER SPRING, Md.

Three executives from Choice Hotels International, Inc. today addressed attendees at the annual Americas Lodging Investment Summit, the hospitality industry's premier investment conference, held this year in San Diego, California. Choice executives speaking at this event included David Pepper, president, upscale and extended stay brands and senior vice president, franchise development; William Edmundson, president, Cambria Suites; and Kevin Lewis, president, extended stay brands.

David Pepper, who oversees Choice's domestic franchise development efforts and its emerging market brands, shared his perspectives in the Brands & Owners panel. He is responsible for the company's franchise sales efforts and for the strategic oversight of Choice's newest brands, Cambria Suites, MainStay Suites and Suburban Extended Stay Hotel.

"Choice franchises ten brands that are designed to meet all stages of a hotel's lifecycle and we are keenly focused on our owners' profitability and return on investment," noted Pepper. "With a well-segmented family of value-oriented brands, strong central reservations system, and growing global loyalty program, we are well-positioned to deliver brand equity to our properties. Additionally, in this current downturn, we have seen great interest in our Ascend Collection program, which offers independent historic, boutique and unique hotels the ability to leverage our robust reservations and distribution system while retaining their local identity and individuality."

William Edmundson, who directs upscale, all-suites, contemporary Cambria Suites brand from Choice Hotels, was a part of the Select Service Segment panel. He highlighted the brand's attributes that have led it to receive rave traveler reviews, including its proactive service culture, stylish design, use of the latest in technology, and a wealth of amenities such as a casual dining and gathering area, a state-of-the-art fitness center, and a 24-7 convenience store. The Cambria Suites brand has ranked as the first, second or third best hotel among TripAdvisor ratings in every market nationwide that has a Cambria Suites hotel.

"Our brand is being warmly embraced by travelers that want a full-service hotel experience at a cutting-edge, new and inviting hotel that offers those services they need - such as a fitness center like they work out in at home - at a reasonable price point," said Edmundson. "Level of interest from developers in the Cambria Suites brand remains very strong, and we are extremely confident in our future growth prospects, which is further enhanced by consumer acceptance of the brand."

Kevin Lewis was a member of The Extended Stay segment panel. Lewis is responsible for the strategic direction of the company's extended stay brands, MainStay Suites and Suburban Extended Stay Hotel. He also currently serves as Chair of the Extended Stay Council of the American Hotel & Lodging Association.

"The extended stay segment remains one of the best options for domestic hotel developers, with so many markets having little or no extended stay hotels," noted Lewis. "The segment has historically performed better than transient hotels in a down market. Additionally, we are working diligently to drive profitability for our franchisees by controlling costs for our hotels under construction and our open and operating MainStay Suites and Suburban Extended Stay Hotel properties."

About Choice Hotels

Choice Hotels International franchises more than 5,700 hotels, representing more than 465,000 rooms, in the United States and more than 35 countries and territories. As of September 30, 2008, 955 hotels are under construction, awaiting conversion or approved for development in the United States, representing 76,269 rooms, and an additional 119 hotels, representing 9,647 rooms, are under construction, awaiting conversion or approved for development in more than 20 countries and territories. The company's Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality, Sleep Inn, Clarion, Cambria Suites, MainStay Suites, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, Econo Lodge and Rodeway Inn brands serve guests worldwide. In addition, via its Ascend Collection membership program, travelers in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean have upscale lodging options at historic, boutique and unique hotels.

Additional corporate information may be found on the Choice Hotels Web site, which may be accessed at www.choicehotels.com.

Cambria Suites, Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality, Clarion, Sleep Inn, MainStay Suites, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, Econo Lodge, and Rodeway Inn are proprietary trademarks and service marks of Choice Hotels International, Inc.

(C) 2009 Choice Hotels International, Inc. All rights reserved.

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact: david_peikin@choicehotels.com

SOURCE: Choice Hotels International, Inc.

CONTACT: David Peikin, Senior Director, Corporate Communications of
Choice Hotels International, +1-301-592-6361, david_peikin@choicehotels.com

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The Radisson brands, including Park Plaza, Country Inn & Suites, and Park Inn by Radisson, are owned in the Americas regions by Choice Hotels.
Outside of the Americas, the brands are owned by Radisson Hotel Group, an unaffiliated company headquartered in Belgium.