London Town to open provincial Days hotels

Privately owned London Town Hotels has entered into an agreement with hotel franchisor Cendant Hotel Group Europe to expand outside the capital for the first time.

London Town Hotels, which has five hotels in London operating under the Quality, Comfort and Country Inn & Suites brands, has teamed up with Cendant to develop a portfolio of franchised properties, principally under Cendant's Days Hotel brand, in a number of locations outside London.

It expects to commit to at least three new-build management contracts by the end of 2004, with a first opening anticipated in 2005. An announcement on the first hotel, which will be in the Midlands, is expected soon.

Matthew Brooks, director of marketing and revenue at London Town Hotels, said: "Days Hotel is a fresh and well-developed concept that has been successfully adapted to European standards. It is ripe for development in the UK, and we look forward to becoming one of Cendant's main franchise development partners."

London Town Hotels is also in separate discussions over a possible sixth hotel in central London.