6 May, 2015 IHG to Open First Crowne Plaza in Chennai

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), one of world's leading hotel companies, today announced the signing of the 286-room Crowne Plaza Chennai Adyar Park with Adyar Gate Hotels Limited.

The hotel, which IHG is now managing, will be rebranded as Crowne Plaza Chennai Adyar Park, marking the entry of the company's Crowne Plaza brand into the key Indian city. The hotel joins Holiday Inn Express Chennai Mahindra World City, making it the second IHG hotel in Chennai.

Located in the city's central business district and taking the site of the existing Sheraton Park Chennai, the hotel bears additional significance for IHG as it was originally the site of the company's first Holiday Inn to open in India in the 1970s.

Just 10 kilometres from Chennai International Airport, the hotel features a wide array of excellent dining options which include Dakshin, a popular destination for regional cuisines from India's southern peninsula; Cappuccino, the 24-hour all day dining restaurant; The Residency whichboasts global culinary delights and On the Rocks, popularamongst guests and locals for its grilled cuisine and famous for hosting Michelin star-winning chefs.

Guests can also enjoy evening drinks and bar snacks at TheWestminster bar overlooking the pool; and round up the night at Gatsby 2000, the hotel's night club which is also one of the city's most popular private event spaces.

As a globally recognised business travel focused brand, Crowne Plaza Chennai Adyar Park is equipped with a 24-hour business centre and generous meeting space including a ballroom which can seat 500 people. Guests can enjoy the fully-equipped health club and an outdoor pool during their leisure time.

Shantha de Silva, Head of South West Asia, IHG said: "Chennai is already one of the largest industrial and commercial centres in South India, and as it grows in prominence as one of the country's key cultural, economic and educational hubs, there is great potential for growth in tourism and hospitality. It is with great pleasure that we are working together with Adyar Gate Hotels Limited to launch our Crowne Plaza brand here to cater to the increasing number of business and leisure travellers."

Manish Goyal, Joint Managing Director, Adyar Gate Hotels Limited said, "IHG has a strong reputation as a hotel operator and we are pleased to be working with them to open Crowne Plaza Chennai Adyar Park in Chennai. The hotel has great potential to increase its share of business through a new and improved corporate and leisure focus and we're confident we found the right partner to deliver these great guest experiences."

There are currently eight Crowne Plaza hotels and resorts open across India, and five additional hotels due to open in the next three to five years.

IHG has 21 hotels (4,100 rooms) open in 13 cities in India across four brands: InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express. The company has 47 hotels in its development pipeline, including Holiday Inn Express Chennai OMR and Holiday Inn Chennai OMR Tidel Park which will open in Chennai within the next three to five years.

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Notes to Editors:

IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) [LON:IHG, NYSE:IHG (ADRs)] is a global organisation with a broad portfolio of hotel brands, including InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts, HUALUXE® Hotels and Resorts, Crowne Plaza® Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Indigo®, EVEN™ Hotels, Holiday Inn® Hotels & Resorts, Holiday Inn Express®, Staybridge Suites® and Candlewood Suites®. In January 2015, IHG acquired Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, the world's leading boutique hotel business.

IHG manages IHG® Rewards Club, the world's first and largest hotel loyalty programme with over 84 million members worldwide. The programme was relaunched in July 2013, offering enhanced benefits for members including free internet across all hotels, globally.

IHG franchises, leases, manages or owns over 4,800 hotels and more than 710,000 guest rooms in nearly 100 countries, with over 1,200 hotels in its development pipeline. Over 350,000 people work across IHG's hotels and corporate offices worldwide.

In January 2015 we completed the acquisition of Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, adding 62 hotels (11,300 rooms) to our system size and 16 hotels to our development pipeline.

InterContinental Hotels Group PLC is the Group's holding company and is incorporated in Great Britain and registered in England and Wales.

Visit www.ihg.com for hotel information and reservations and www.ihgrewardsclub.com for more on IHG Rewards Club. For our latest news, visit: www.ihg.com/media, www.twitter.com/ihg, www.facebook.com/ihg or www.youtube.com/ihgplc.

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