Nine new Best Western hotels by 2011

       Best Western International, the world's largest hotel chain, plans to open nine hotels nationwide by 2011, to address growing numbers of budget ravellers.
       Four will open this year : near Suvarnabhumi Airport and in Sukhumvit Soi 13 in Bangkok, Phuket's Patong Beach and Pattaya.
       Thre hotels are planned for next year, in Hua Hin, Phetchaburi and Koh Samui. The other two will be Sukhumvit Sois 1 and Soi 20 in Bangkok in 2011.
       The group now operates 10 hotels in Thailand for a total of 1,238 rooms. With the nine new hotels, that number will rise to 2,283 rooms in 2011.
       Chris Chen, regional manager for marketing services, said most of the new hotels would be run under franchise contracts and the rest by company management.
       The group will also increase its its rooms in Asia, from 12,250 this year to 19,079 rooms in the next few years. Thailand is of a key market in this expansion.
       "The global economic crisis has brought us an opportunity, because many small individual hotels need brand hotel chains to help in terms of marketing and sales network," said Chen.
       He said difficult times were not good for making new investments or doubling sales volume but were good for expanding management.
       Many international hotel chains are spreadeing into budget hotels, because many travellers today demand lower prices and a degree of comfort rahther than a luxury hotel. Thailand is becoming an emerging market for the budget-hotel industry.
       Chen said Best Western Hotels Asian revenue dropped 30 per cent year on year between December and June. Revenue in japan fell 109 per cent, followed by India (80 per cent), Malaysia (50 per cent) and Thailand (40 per cent).
       Spending by Asian tourists at Best Westerns outside of Asia fell 17 per cent between December and July, the poorest performance in five years, against average growth of 19 per cent per year. The group predicts its Asian hotels' revenue will rebound from a decline of 40 per cent in recent mounths to one of only 15 per cent in the next few months. Asian tourists will spend more at hotels outside of the region, with expectations of growth of 5 per cent at most.
       To help improve the situation, the group will encourage spending by its 12 million members worldwide through its Best Western Rewards loyalty programme.
       The group will join hands with airlines, credit-card companies and new alliances to create new promotions and packagtes to boost revenue and encourage online bookins.