InterContinental Hotels Group PLC has launched a new hotel in Taichung under the Holiday Inn Express brand with the aim of achieving 80 percent occupancy next year.
The 96-guestroom facility is in a new building with 10 stories above ground and three basement levels near Fengchia Night Market (逢甲夜市) in Situn District (西屯).
It is targeting young, individual leisure and business travelers, general manager Wilson Chang (張惟森) said by telephone.
The hotel is a collaboration with Taipei-based Earnest Development and Construction Co (誠意開發), which is expanding into the hospitality industry after three decades of property development, Chang said.
InterContinental and Earnest Development are upbeat about the business potential in the Fengchia area, where occupancy rates have been growing rapidly, while the hotel is a 15-minute drive from the city’s high-speed rail station, and in the vicinity of the Taichung Metropolitan Opera House and other popular tourist attractions, he said.
The convenient location and room rates from NT$3,100 per night, including breakfast, would help the hotel gain popularity quickly and achieve an occupancy rate of 80 percent or higher in the first year, Chang said.
InterContinental, which operates 5,603 hotels under 15 brands worldwide, is keen to expand its business presence in Taiwan and the rest of Asia.
It is soon to add Hotel Indigo Taipei in the Dazhi (大直) area to its portfolio, which also includes Indigo Kaohsiung, Indigo Hsinchu, Crowne Plaza and Kimpton.
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