IHG to open first Crowne Plaza in Belgrade

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April 11, 2008 // Franchising.com // InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) today announces it has signed an agreement with Serbian-based Delta Real Estate to open the first Crowne Plaza in the Serbian capital of Belgrade.

The 415-room hotel - located in the commercial centre of New Belgrade - will undergo a major refurbishment, costing more than €30 million, before opening under the Crowne Plaza brand in 2010.

IHG will manage the property under a 25-year management agreement with Delta Real Estate. Last year the two companies announced an agreement to develop and manage a new build 325-room InterContinental Hotel in Belgrade, due to open in the first half of 2011.

The announcement comes after Delta Real Estate was declared the winning bidder for the purchase of the property, which was previously the state-owned Hotel Continental.

The Crowne Plaza Belgrade - which will have extensive meeting space as well as the 415 guest rooms - will be located just 500 metres from the InterContinental Belgrade.

IHG's Vice President of Development Europe, Peter Vermeer, said: "Belgrade is enjoying continued rapid and robust commercial activity which is fuelling a strong demand for high quality hotel brands. We are very pleased to be working with Delta Real Estate which has proved to be a very knowledgeable and capable partner in the area."

Mr. Dejan RaciÄ‡, CEO Delta Real Estate, said: "IHG owns some of the world's strongest hotel brands. It also has the skills and resources to exploit the fantastic opportunity we have in Serbia."

InterContinental Hotels Group PLC (IHG) of the United Kingdom [LON:IHG, NYSE:IHG (ADRs)] is one of the world's largest hotel groups by number of rooms. IHG owns, manages, leases or franchises, through various subsidiaries, almost 4,000 hotels and more than 585,000 guest rooms in nearly 100 countries and territories around the world. IHG owns a portfolio of well recognised and respected hotel brands including InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn® Hotels and Resorts, Holiday Inn Express®, Staybridge Suites®, Candlewood Suites® and Hotel Indigo®, and also manages the world's largest hotel loyalty programme, Priority Club® Rewards with over 37 million members worldwide.

The company pioneered the travel industry's first collaborative response to environmental issues as founder of the International Hotels and Environment Initiative (IHEI). The IHEI formed the foundations of the Tourism Partnership launched by the International Business Leaders Forum in 2004, of which IHG is still a member today. The environment and local communities remain at the heart of IHG's global corporate responsibility focus.

IHG offers information and online reservations for all its hotel brands at http://www.ihg.com/ and information for the Priority Club Rewards programme at http://www.priorityclub.com/.