Accor is on track to add over 60 new hotels in Asia Pacific during 2011. With the hotel operator celebrating 20 years of operation in both Australia and Vietnam, they have also signed more than 100 new hotel contracts in the same year. There are over 200 hotels in the pipeline committed to Asia Pacific.

Accor chairman and chief operating officer, Asia Pacific, Michael Issenberg said: “2011 has been a year of strong performance for Accor in Asia Pacific, where we will add more than 60 new hotels to the network constituting an additional 11,500 guest rooms.  Beyond this accomplishment, we have signed an additional 100 new hotel contracts during the year taking our committed hotel pipeline to over 200 hotels.  We anticipate robust growth activity to continue well into 2012.”

China (18 hotels), Thailand (9 hotels), India (7 hotels) and Indonesia (7 hotels) recorded major growth during 2011.  Accor is focused on China and India as core growth markets and where collectively 107 additional hotels are committed and where together the network will almost double in size in the coming few years.

Touted as the new ‘I’ in ‘BRIC’ (Brazil, Russia, India and China) - Indonesia provides a strong market opportunity for Accor and where the company has operated since 1993 and with a current network of 40 hotels throughout the Archipelago.  Beyond this network, Accor has a further 30 hotels committed.

Australia and New Zealand also experienced strong growth, with 15 hotels added to the network in 2011 In New Zealand. These include Novotel Auckland Airport, Pullman Auckland (the former Hyatt), Hotel Lighter Quays Auckland (the former Westin) and Formule 1 Auckland, while in Australia new signings include Fairmont Resort Blue Mountains, Mercure Capricorn Resort in central Queensland, Mercure Canberra, Mercure Kooindah Waters on the NSW Central Coast, Mercure Gerringong, Mercure Bairnsdale and All Seasons Cairns Colonial Club. 

“Accor is today the largest operator of hotels in Asia Pacific with over 450 hotels in operation and with the expansion achieved during 2011 and the extensive committed hotel pipeline, this leading position is cemented well into the future,” added Issenberg.

The operating environment in Asia Pacific has been resilient during 2011, with trading across the regional network up 11 per cent year on year.  This performance has been driven by demand from both business and leisure segments and through an upswing in meeting and events business.