The United Kingdom's largest economy hotel chain, the
580-property Premier Inn, announced today that it has started distributing
through a global distribution system for the first time after signing a deal
with Amadeus. All 580 hotels will be loaded and bookable through the system by
mid-August, the two companies said.
Premier Inn has enjoyed considerable growth in corporate bookings since the
recession started. In the 13 weeks leading to June 3, overall sales grew 10.5
percent but corporate account sales rose 21 percent. The chain distributes to
U.K. travel management companies through a direct connect using an extensible
mark-up language interface. Marketing director Gerard Tempest told EuroBTN that
Premier Inn has signed with Amadeus to reach continental European TMCs, which
are unable to access its direct connect option.
"As we grow our network, we are looking to drive more business from
short-haul markets," said Tempest. Amadeus is the GDS market leader in
most continental European countries, and Premier Inn is looking particularly to
drive more inbound business from France, Spain, Italy and Germany. Hugo
Ehrnreich, head of hotel distribution for Amadeus, said: "This is an
important part of Amadeus' commitment to providing relevant content, as recent
feedback from our travel agency partners shows that demand for budget hotels is
soaring."
Amadeus already provides a revenue management system for Premier Inn, which the
chain has used for 18 months.
Last week, Travelodge, the other major U.K. economy hotel chain, announced
plans to expand its portfolio to 452 after agreeing to buy 52 properties from
hotel and restaurant chain Mitchells and Butlers.