The document provides a timeline of notable brand transactions in the hotel industry over the past 30 years. It outlines mergers and acquisitions of companies and hotel brands, including Vantage Hospitality Group acquiring six America's Best Franchising brands in 2014, Marriott International acquiring Protea Hospitality Group in South Africa in 2014, and Accor acquiring Red Roof Inn for over $1.1 billion in 1998. The timeline shows the consolidation of brands and hotel companies through acquisitions and mergers over the past three decades.

1. Brand swap: A timeline
America’s Best Franchising’s six brands are among many hotel brands to have changed hands during the
past 30 years. The below timeline highlights some of the most noteworthy brand transactions. The list is
not meant to be all encompassing.
Vantage Hospitality Group 2014
acquires America’s Best Franchising hotel brands:
America’s Best Inns & Suites, Country Hearth Inns
& Suites, Jameson Inn, Jameson Suites, Signature
Inn, and 3 Palms Hotels & Resorts. Vantage also
acquires ABF’s license for the Budgetel Inns &
Suites brand as part of the same deal.
2014 Marriott International
Scandic Hotels 2014
acquires South Africa-based Protea Hospitality
Group for $186 million, which comprises 116 hotels
totaling 10,148 rooms.
Stockholm-based Scandic Hotels acquires Rica
Hotels, adding an additional 72 hotels to its existing
portfolio.
2014 Starwood Capital Group
Vacation Holdings Hawaii 2013
acquires U.K.-based hotel owner and operator
Four Pillars Hotels. The transaction includes five
owned and leased hotels and one managed hotel
comprising 863 rooms.
an affiliate of Miami-based Interval Leisure Group,
acquires for an undisclosed sum Aqua Hospitality
and its Aqua Hotels and Resorts.
2013 The Carlyle Group
America’s Best Franchising 2012
acquires 7 Days Group Holdings, a Chinese
economy hotel chain, for $689 million.
acquires the Jameson Inn brand. 2012 Blackstone Group
Marriott International 2012
aquires the Motel 6 and Studio 6 brands for $1.9
billion.
acquires Gaylord Hotels brand for $210 million. 2011 New World Hospitality
Home Inns & Hotel Management 2011
Hong Kong-based New World Hospitality acquires
Rosewood Hotels & Resorts for $229.5 million.
acquires Motel 168 International Holdings Limited
for $470 million.
2010 Wyndham Hotel Group
Wyndham Worldwide 2008 acquires Tryp hotel brand for $43 million.
acquires US Franchise Systems, including the
Microtel Inn & Suites and Hawthorn Suites brands
for $131 million.
2007 The Blackstone Group
Accor 2007 acquires Hilton Hotels for $26 billion.
announces the sale of Red Roof Inns to Citigroup
Global Special Situations Group and Westbridge
Hospitality Fund LP for $1.3 billion.
2006 Hilton Hotels Corporation
Starwood Hotels & Resorts 2005 reacquires Hilton International.
acquires Le Méridien brand for approximately $225
million.
2005 Cendant
The Blackstone Group 2005
acquires the Wyndham brand from The Blackstone
Group.
acquires La Quinta Corporation and La Quinta
Properties for $3.4 billion.
2005 Choice
Harrah’s 2005
acquires Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, an
economy extended-stay brand.
acquires Caesars Entertainment Company, which
at the time comprised hotels under the Caesars,
Bally’s, Grand Casino and Flamingo brands.
2004 Cendant
The Blackstone Group 2004
purchased the Ramada International Hotels &
Resorts unit from Marriott International. Cendant
would later spin off its hotel assets as Wyndham
Worldwide.
acquires Extended Stay America. 2004 MGM Resorts International
Six Continents 2001 acquires Mandalay Resort Group for $7.9 billion.
acquires the European Posthouse chain of hotels for
approximately $1.4 billion.
2001 Nomura International
MGM Grand 2000
acquires Le Méridien Hotels & Resorts from
Compass Group for $3.3 billion.
acquires Mirage Resorts for $6.4 billion. 2000 Granada Group plc
Accor 1999
Forte Group’s parent company, Granada Group
plc, and global contract catering giant, Compass
Group—and the subsequent de-merger of the two
companies in February 2001—the ownership of
the Forte Hotel Group and its three brands (Le
Méridien, Heritage Hotels and Posthouse Hotels)
passed solely to Compass Group.
acquires Red Roof Inn for more than $1.1 billion. 1998 Wyndham Worldwide
Bass 1998
In an effort to build an upscale limited-service
brand, Wyndham Worldwide acquires the
Summerfield Hotel Corporation and renames it
Summerfield Suites by Wyndham.
acquires the InterContinental hotel company for
$2.9 billion.
1998 Starwood
Starwood Lodging 1998 acquires ITT Sheraton Corporation for $14.3 billion.
acquires Westin Hotels & Resorts for $1.8 billion. 1997 Marriott
Hospitality Franchise Systems 1996
acquires Renaissance Hotel Group, doubling its
presence overseas.
acquires the trademark rights and franchise systems
for the Travelodge operation in North America from
the Forte Group for $39 million. HFS was later
merged into Cendant Corporation.
1995 Marriott
Forte Group 1994
acquires a 49% interest in The Ritz-Carlton Hotel
Company.
acquires Le Méridien. 1990 Accor
Choice Hotels 1990 acquires Motel 6 for $1.3 billion.
acquires the Econo Lodge and Friendship Inn
brands.
1990 Choice
Bass 1988 adds the Rodeway Inn brand to its system.
U.K.-based Bass acquires Holiday Inns
International.
1987 Marriott
acquires the Residence Inn brand.
Source: Hotel Now Now research, pulling information from www.HotelNewsNow.com,
various company websites and third-party news reports.
Copyright ©2014 Hotel News Now, a division of STR, Inc. All rights reserved.
Illustrated by Dana Shelton, Hotel News Now.
* Help fill in the timeline by adding other brand transactions we may have missed in the comments section below.
We’ll periodically update the file accordingly.