"We are very excited to introduce a new generation hotel product for the economy segment of the lodging industry," said Trudy Rautio, president of Carlson Hotels Worldwide, the Americas. "By focusing on key customer touch points and an energized, carefully defined brand concept, we expect to distinguish the Park Inn brand from the field of competitors in this segment of the industry," she added.

Carlson Hotels Worldwide completed the total acquisition of the Park Inn brand from its joint-venture partner in 2003.

Nancy Johnson, brand leader for Park Inn and executive vice president of select-service hotels for Carlson Hotels Worldwide, said the new Park Inn concept is based on in-depth customer research and extensive brand positioning work that Carlson conducted over the past year. "The voice of customer has been the guiding force in creating this new concept for the Park Inn brand," Johnson explained.

"As a result, we expect the new Park Inn hotel concept will bring a refreshing and contemporary new level of hotel experience to the economy segment," said Johnson. "Our customers told us that they wanted the new Park Inn to provide a fresh feel for an unencumbered stay at a reasonable cost," she said. "They also expressed a need for more consistency from hotel to hotel, plus a desire for a few pleasant surprises. The new Park Inn will deliver on all of those desires," Johnson added.

Carlson expects that construction will begin on the first prototype Park Inn later this year. The estimated construction cost for the new concept will be $38,000 to $42,000 per guestroom. Development projections for the Park Inn brand call for 160 Park Inn locations in the Americas in the next five years. Rates for Park Inn guestrooms are expected to average between USD $45 to $70 per night.

The new hotel concept brings to life the colorful Park Inn logo that was launched last year. The logo includes a color bar of multi-colored blocks of red, gold, teal and blue -- design elements that are integrated in unique ways throughout the new hotel concept.

Park Inn Signature Customer Touch Points

The signature touch points of the new Park Inn concept are the bed, shower and lighting design.

Bed: The signature bed includes an enhanced pillow top inlay pad over a mattress that is of a quality and comfort above the competitive set for Park Inn. Sheets are a 180-thread count standard and pillows contain a "touch of down." The bed covering is double-sheeted with a duvet and white synthetic feather blanket.

Shower/Bath: The bathroom is bright and inviting with cobalt blue accents in both the floor tile and artwork. The towels will be thicker and higher in quality than traditional economy guest expectations. The unique hookless vinyl shower curtain mounted on a crescent-shaped shower curtain rod has a modern design and the distinctive showerhead offers guests a refreshing shower experience. Both are innovative for hotels in the economy segment.

Lighting Design: The signature lighting is modern and offers a combination of task and ambient lighting options, depending on guest preference, and better overall illumination. The lobby offers an abundance of natural light enhanced by free-form track lighting for a welcoming, comfortable ambiance.

There are currently over 70 Park Inn locations in 11 countries worldwide, with more than 30 in North America.