InterContinental Hotels Group soon will launch a new
midscale brand. IHG did not reveal the name, instead calling it Project Horizon
in promotional materials.
The price point will be $10 to $15 less than IHG's Holiday
Inn Express. The properties are intended to be new construction with 95 to 100
guest rooms. The properties will feature "intimate and inviting"
public spaces built for both working and socializing and may include a pool.
The guest rooms will focus on restful sleep, including quality mattresses and
bedding. Each room also will feature a built-in work space, open closet, smart
TV and quality shower. The hotels will offer mobile check-in and IHG Connect
enhanced Wi-Fi.
The midscale segment is a relative white space for the
company, as the extended-stay Candlewood Suites is its only midscale offering.
Both Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express sit in the upper-midscale segment.
IHG anticipates the brand will be ready for
franchising this fall and the first hotels will begin construction in early
2018 to open in 2019.