February 9, 2012 - Accor, the world’s leading hotel operator and market leader in Brazil, opens its 150th hotel in Brazil with the Novotel Porto Alegre Aeroporto and celebrates 34 years of presence in this country.

Novotel Porto Alegre Aeroporto: first franchise Novotel in Brazil

Accor opens the 11th hotel of its midscale brand Novotel in Brazil with its historical local partner, Atrio Hotéis, specialized in the development and management of hotels, and with Prisma Engenharia, a real estate company. Both partners invested BRL 30 million to develop this 166-room hotel.

Strategically located in front of the Salgado Filho International Airport, Novotel Porto Alegre Aeroporto brings in its essence special focus on spaces of events through the successful Meeting & Novotel offer, a differentiated proposal in organization of small and medium meetings. According to the chain’s international standard, this new unit offers free WI-FI to customers, webcorners with Mac computers and free internet access in the lobby. Also targeting a family clientele, the Novotel Porto Alegre Aeroporto has a space especially intended for the well being of this public, with playful games and X-Box 360 videogame.

150th Accor hotel in Brazil

The opening of the Novotel Porto Alegre Aeroporto is a landmark for Accor who opened its first hotel in Brazil 34 years ago, under the Novotel brand, with the Novotel São Paulo Morumbi. The Group is present in Brazil with 150 hotels under the Sofitel, Pullman, Novotel, Mercure, ibis and ibis budget/Formule 1 brands. In 2011 alone, the group opened 9 hotels (1,300 rooms).

With 80 projects under development and three major contracts for the development of 25 ibis budget in Brazil, the Group is targeting a network of 250 hotels in Brazil by 2015.

“Brazil is living a time that favors sufficiently business in general and specifically the hotel industry. The rise of the GIP reflects directly on the increase of demand and favors development of the hotel industry.” declared Roland de Bonadona, Chief Operating Officer for Accor in Latin America. “The expansion of the hotel management sector has been driven positively by the country’s good political and economic context, synonymous of larger investments and greater confidence of investors; by the development of the country’s middle class, which propelled the economic segment; by the growing demand of large centers; and without any doubt, by the proximity of huge events like the FIFA World Cup and the Olympics, which in spite that they do not influence Accor’s business decisions, have pulled in investments in infrastructure in Brazil”, Roland de Bonadona relates.

Three major franchise agreement for the construction of 25 ibis budget in Brazil

Among those expansion projects, Accor has recently signed franchise agreements with three local partners (Atrio, Souza Maria and Martins Hotéis), for the development of 25 ibis budget (2,400 rooms) in the country. The total amount invested by these partners sums up to BRL 200 million. Those hotels will open in the next four years and will meet the demand for business tourism and hotel management in small and medium sized cities, with a population of 100 to 500 thousand inhabitants. ibis budget Sertãozinho should be the first to open its doors in the first half of 2013.

About Accor
Accor, the world's leading hotel operator and market leader in Europe, is present in 90 countries with more than 4,400 hotels and 530,000 rooms. Accor's broad portfolio of hotel brands - Sofitel, Pullman, MGallery, Novotel, Suite Novotel, Mercure, Adagio, ibis, all seasons/ibis Styles, Etap Hotel/Formule 1/ibis budget, hotelF1 and Motel 6 - provide an extensive offer from luxury to budget. With 145,000 employees worldwide, the Group offers to its clients and partners nearly 45 years of know-how and expertise.

About Novotel
Novotel is mid-scale hotel of Accor group. Novotel’s consistently high standard of service contributes to the wellbeing of both business and leisure travellers: think spacious, modular-design guestrooms, balanced cuisine available 24/7, excellent meeting facilities, attentive staff, dedicated children’s areas and rejuvenating wellness facilities. The Novotel group is a pioneer in the area of sustainable development, and all Novotel hotels participate in the EarthCheck worldwide environmental certification program.

Novotel offers close to 400 hotels and resorts in 60 countries, situated in the center of major international cities from business districts to tourist destinations.

More information at novotel.com