ibis Hong Kong Central and Sheung Wan

Following the opening of ibis Hong Kong Central and Sheung Wan, international hotel operator Accor has reported a milestone achievement, now offering 100,000 rooms in the Asia Pacific region.

Accor chairman and chief executive Dennis Hennequin said the realisation of providing such a significant number of rooms to guests advocated the Group’s growth strategy for the region.

“Asia-Pacific presents tremendous opportunities for expansion, given the region’s dynamic economic development and rapidly growing middle class leading to many more people travelling today than ever before,” Mr Hennequin said.

Accor also commissioned the Asia Economy Hotels Research 2012 study and revealed the results at the 2012 Economy Hotels World Asia conference in Singapore.

Results revealed six in ten travellers through Asia prefer international economy hotel brands to domestic brands and assign different ‘personalities’ to them.

International brands were considered ‘stylish, high-class, reliable, attractive and energetic’ compared to domestic brands, which tended to be viewed as ‘down-to-earth, practical, approachable, and considerate.’

“We learned that guests are willing to spend more per night to stay at an international over a domestic brand economy hotel - in some markets nearly 90 percent more,” said Accor Asia-Pacific chairman and chief operating officer Michael Issenberg said.

“However, we also learned that they trust our brands to deliver more value for money - in terms of professionalism, comfort and amenities.