NEW ORLEANS  (February 27 , 2012) – According to a study conducted by Smith Travel Research, La Quinta grew faster than any other select service brand in the years 2001-2011, growing more than 166% in that period. In the same period, its nearest competitor grew at just over 64%. Also in that decade, the number of hotels in the La Quinta system grew from 306 hotels, to 815 hotels. In the five years ending in 2011, a challenging period for the entire industry, La Quinta grew its domestic hotel count by 43.4%. Its nearest competitor in that period grew by just over 31%.

Rajiv Trivedi, La Quinta’s Executive Vice President and Chief Development Officer, said, “We were happy to receive this data from Smith Travel Research, and are proud, today, to share it with our colleagues in the industry.” Trivedi concluded, “The numbers substantiate what we have known for some time: That in good times and challenging times, on every U.S. street corner and internationally, La Quinta is the most exciting and desirable brand in select service. We look forward to continuing to share good news on our growth, domestically and internationally, in the weeks ahead.”

“La Quinta's growth is a testament to our commitment to guest satisfaction and the relationship we have with our partners,” said Wayne B. Goldberg, the La Quinta Chief Executive Officer. He concluded,  “We have always said we are unique as an owner/operator who has skin in the game.  Striving to keep open communication with our partners, La Quinta is flexible and always amenable to different ways of thinking. When our partners benefit, we benefit.  That is why we refer to this as a win-win partnership.”

Beginning its annual owners and general managers conference in New Orleans this week, La Quinta emerges from another exciting year of growth in 2011. In addition to the Smith Travel numbers above, the brand opened three hotels in Mexico, bringing the total in Mexico to five. It expects to double that number in the coming months. La Quinta also built out its international infrastructure through the appointment of a new director of franchise development for Central and South America in 2011, and it recently announced the opening of two new hotels in Ontario, Canada.

Additional announcements highlighting the brand’s international growth are expected later in the conference.
               
About La Quinta
LQ Management L.L.C. is one of the largest operators of limited-service hotels in the United States.  Based in Dallas, Texas, the Company operates and provides franchise services to more than 800 hotels in 46 states, Canada and Mexico under the La Quinta Inn® and La Quinta Inn & Suites® brands. For reservations or more information about La Quinta, please visit www.LQ.com or call 1-800-SLEEPLQ.    Follow La Quinta Inns & Suites on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LQ or become a Facebook fan at http://www.facebook.com/laquinta.