Holiday Inn is a brand of hotels within the InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG). Holiday Inn is in the midst of the biggest relaunch in hospitality history creating a more contemporary brand image including a new logo, and driving consistency in all 3,296 Holiday Inn brand family hotels around the world. With over 1,000 hotels already relaunched worldwide, the completion of the relaunch of the global estate is expected to be completed in 2010.
History of Holiday Inn Hotels
The original Holiday Inn chain of hotels was created in 1952 in Memphis, Tennessee, by homebuilder Kemmons Wilson to provide inexpensive family accommodation for travelers within the United States. Wilson opened the first Holiday Inn on August 1, 1952 at 4941 Summer Avenue in the Berclair district of Memphis on the main road to and from Nashville. Though the actual hotel does not exist anymore, a historical sign marks where it once stood. In 1954, Wilson incorporated the chain with Wallace E. Johnson.
Wilson initially came up with the idea after a family road trip to Washington, D.C., during which he was disappointed by the quality and consistency provided by the roadside motels of that era. The name Holiday Inn was given to the original hotel by his architect Eddie Bluestein as a joke, in reference to the Bing Crosby movie.
In 1957, Wilson franchised the chain as Holiday Inn of America and it grew dramatically, following Wilson's original tenet that the properties should be standardized, clean, predictable, family-friendly and readily accessible to road travellers. By 1958, there were 50 locations across the country, 100 by 1959, 500 by 1964, and the 1000th Holiday Inn opened in San Antonio, Texas, in 1968. The chain dominated the motel market, leveraged its innovative Holidex reservation system, put considerable financial pressure on traditional hotels and set the standard for its competitors, like Ramada Inns, Quality Inn, Howard Johnson's, and Best Western. By June 1972, when Wilson was featured on the cover of Time magazine, there were over 1,400 Holiday Inn hotels worldwide. Innovations like the company's Holidome indoor pools turned many hotels into roadside resorts.
The company later branched into other related enterprises, including Medi-Center nursing homes, Continental Trailways, Delta Queen and various related enterprises. Wilson also later developed the Orange Lake Resort and Country Club near Orlando and a chain called Wilson World Hotels. The family of founder Kemmons Wilson still operates hotels as part of the Kemmons Wilson Companies of Memphis. Wilson retired from Holiday Inn in 1979.
Although still a healthy company, changing business conditions and demographics saw Holiday Inn lose its market dominance in the 1980s. Holiday Inns, Inc. was renamed "Holiday Corporation" in 1985 to reflect the growth of the company’s brands, including Harrah's Entertainment, Embassy Suites Hotels, Crowne Plaza, Homewood Suites by Hilton and Hampton Inn. In 1988, Holiday Corporation was purchased by UK-based Bass PLC (the owners of the Bass beer brand), followed by the remaining domestic Holiday Inn hotels in 1990, when founder Wilson sold his interest, after which the hotel group was known as Holiday Inn Worldwide. The remainder of Holiday Corporation was spun off to shareholders as Promus Companies Incorporated. In 1991, Bass launched Holiday Inn Express, a complementary brand in the limited service segment. In 1994, Bass launched Crowne Plaza, a move into the upscale hotel market. In 1997, Bass created and launched a new hotel brand, Staybridge Suites by Holiday Inn, entering the North American upscale extended stay market. In March 1998, Bass acquired the InterContinental brand, expanding into the luxury hotel market. In 2000, Bass sold its brewing assets (and the rights to the Bass name) and changed its name to Six Continents PLC. InterContinental Hotels Group was created in 2003 after Six Continents split into two daughter companies: Mitchells & Butlers PLC to handle restaurant assets, and IHG to focus on soft drinks and hotels, including the Holiday Inn brand.
Brands of Holiday Inn Hotels
Holiday Inn - the most recognizable tier of service. There are two distinct types: high-rise, full-service plaza hotels and low-rise, full-service hotels. The former also included many high-rises with round, central-core construction, instantly recognizable from the 1970s. Both offer a restaurant, pools at most locations, room service, an exercise room, and functional but comfortable rooms.
Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites - properties offering all the amenities and services of a regular Holiday Inn but consists of rooms mixed with suites.
Holiday Inn Resort - Offering all the amenities and services of a full-service Holiday Inn, resorts are considered a more of an advertising branding than a completely different brand. Most Holiday Inn Resorts are located in high leisure tourism markets.
Holiday Inn Select – upper range full-service hotels which cater to business travelers. In 2006, it was announced that Holiday Inn Select hotels will be discontinued. Existing hotels may continue to operate under the Holiday Inn Select flag until their existing license expires, however many are converting to Crowne Plaza or regular Holiday Inn hotels, with no further marketing or advertising based around the "Select" moniker.
Holiday Inn Sunspree Resorts – properties in resort areas with full-service amenities and deluxe service. These are typically very large properties.
Holiday Inn Garden Court – which exist only in Europe and South Africa and are designed to reflect the national culture.
Holiday Inn Express – Smaller versions of Holiday Inn hotels with limited services
Holiday Inn Club Vacations – timeshare brand launched in September 2008. There are currently five Holiday Inn Club Vacations resort properties: Holiday Inn Club Vacations at Orange Lake Resort, Orlando, FL; Holiday Inn Club Vacations at Lake Geneva Resort, Lake Geneva, WI; Holiday Inn Club Vacations at Ascutney Mountain Resort, Brownsville, VT; Holiday Inn Club Vacations at Bay Point Resort, Panama City, FL; and Holiday Inn Club Vacation at South Beach Resort in Myrtle Beach, SC.
Interesting Holiday Inn Facts
- Many of the older Holiday Inn hotels, especially the two-story ones with exterior corridors, have been removed from the Holiday Inn system as franchises expired and rebranded. Some old Holidomes have been rebranded as Best Westerns, Days Inns, and Quality Inns. Many Holiday Inn properties are converted to other brands such as Clarion Hotels or Ramada Inn.
- Although originally called "Holiday Inn Crowne Plaza", the Crowne Plaza moniker was split from Holiday Inn in 1994 to form a distinctive brand.
- During the 1960s, there were two Holiday Inn Jr. motels; one in Rantoul, Illinois and the other in Missouri. Motel rooms were located in portables, although the Rantoul location also had one small section in a traditionally-constructed building.
- Holiday Inn was the first hotel chain to co-produce (or sponsor) a syndicated game show, He Said, She Said, in 1969.
- Elton John's song "Holiday Inn" is about being at the hotel chain while touring.
- Holiday Inn was the first hotel chain to introduce a frequent stayer reward program. It debuted in 1977 as Holiday Inn Inner Circle, but was quickly reorganized into Priority Club Worldwide and later Priority Club Rewards.
- Holiday Inn is mentioned in a line in the 1979 The Sugarhill Gang song "Rapper's Delight" ("I say hotel, motel, Holiday Inn...")
- In the movie The Blues Brothers, Jake and Elwood search for their remaining band members at a Holiday Inn in Chicago.
- Holiday Inn was a corporate funder and once, an advertising partner of the PBS 1990's kids' game show, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?
- On April 27, 2006, Major League Baseball Properties (MLBP), Major League Baseball Advanced Media (MLBAM), and the InterContinental Hotels Group announced a three year sponsorship deal to make Holiday Inn "The Official Hotel Of Major League Baseball" As part of the deal Holiday Inn will run a certain amount of commercials during Major League Baseball games and other MLB produced programming, be the main sponsor of one of the activities of fanfest during the All Star Week, and offer baseball-related sweepstakes to its Priority Club Members.
- On October 24, 2007, Holiday Inn Hotels, the InterContinental Hotels Group and Richard Childress Racing announced a muti-year agreement to sponsor the #29 RCR Chevy in the Nationwide Series. Drivers Jeff Burton and Scott Wimmer will share the ride with Scott driving 23 races and Jeff driving the rest of the 35 race schedule.
- At the beginning of the video for The Rolling Stones' song "Undercover of the Night", the Holiday Inn "Great Sign" is visible.
- In 1967, due to vandalism which resulted in heavy damage to a Holiday Inn in Flint, Michigan, the rock band The Who were banned from the entire Holiday Inn chain for life (Newer management lifted the old ban in the 1990s).
- In 2009, the hip hop artist Pitbull also raps the familiar Sugarhill Gang phrase "hotel motel Holiday Inn" in his song Hotel Service.