ROCKVILLE, Md., Dec. 19, 2016 — Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE: CHH) announced today it has signed a multi-unit development agreement with GVK Enterprises, a hospitality management and development firm, to introduce and establish a hotel portfolio in Greece.
Choice anticipates the first property under the agreement will open by the summer of 2017 under the Comfort® brand flag in Athens, and four additional properties will be developed on the Greek mainland and islands under the Comfort®, Quality® and Clarion® brands.
"We are thrilled to be expanding our European portfolio to Greece, an important travel and tourism destination that has shown signs of strong recovery and positive forecasts," said Mark Pearce, senior vice president, international division, Choice Hotels. "Choice wants to support and participate in this recovery and we have every confidence that our brands will thrive in such a dynamic market."
"I'm delighted to work with Choice Hotels and bring their Comfort, Quality and Clarion brands to the Greek capital and islands. We look forward to helping Choice develop a portfolio of hotels that will appeal to international travelers visiting Greece for either business or pleasure. We are extremely proud to be able to bring Choice to a land filled with so much history and culture. Greece has always been one of the most popular tourism destinations and we look forward to sharing the food, hospitality and beaches with the rest of the world through the millions of guests of the Choice family," said George Kontos, President, GVK Enterprises.
This agreement follows several other EMEA market portfolio expansions that Choice has announced in 2016. In April, the company announced it had signed an agreement to deliver approximately 25 hotels and 8,000 rooms in UAE and Saudi Arabia by 2021. Other deals signed include establishing multiple hotels in Belgium and the co-branding of 19 properties in Germany, Austria and Hungary under the Comfort and Quality brands. Choice recently launched its upscale Ascend Hotel Collection® brand in the UK and France, with Turkey to follow in 2017.
