First Home2 Suites set to open in Shenzhen

The country's first Home2 Suites by Hilton, the midrange hotel brand by the global hospitality chain, will be opening this autumn in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, the company announced on Monday.

As well as being the first such hotel in the Asia-Pacific region, Hilton plans to develop more than 1,000 Home2 Suites hotels in China by 2050, the company announced.

"We have seen the rise of China's middle-class and the sinking of our overall market beyond the first-tier cities," said Qian Jin, president of Hilton Greater China and Mongolia. "We have found the great potential of the upper midrange market. Therefore, we have upgraded and expanded those brands, especially Home2 Suites."

To expand in the domestic market, Hilton Group is cooperating with Funyard Hotels & Resorts, a core alliance enterprise of property developer Country Garden, which is responsible for the development, operation and management of Home2 Suites by Hilton in China.

"Brand experience and investment model are the keys to creating a sustainable business," said Ji Hongjun, CEO of Funyard Hotels&Resorts.

"Home2 Suites is a prototype product based on the essential needs of travelers. With Hilton's leading brand appeal in China and the global market and our rich operation experience of managing local middle to high-end hotels, Home2 Suites will continue to expand in the market," Ji added.

As a midrange hotel targeting modern families, contemporary business and independent travelers, Home2 Suites has high cost performance compared with luxury hotels and stronger flexibility and compatibility compared with general business hotels, Ji said.

"For example, many hotels have only one wardrobe so that parent-child guests with too much luggage can only spread their suitcases on the ground, which is easy to trip on and have an accident," Ji said. He explained that Home2 Suites has more complete living facilities and sufficient storage space that is enough to store the luggage of the whole family.

An open kitchen and combined sofa in the leisure reception area that is able to be turned into a sofa bed are also available in rooms, Ji added.

After Home2 Suites officially entered China in 2020, the number of hotels signed and interested in signing contracts in China has exceeded 130, covering cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu, and expanded to second and third-tier cities such as Wuhu in Anhui province and Yibin in Sichuan province. It has become one of the fastest-growing medium and high-end hotel brands in China.

According to Hilton Group, the Home2 Suites at Beijing West Railway Station, Chengdu Wuhou Shrine and Wuhu East will be coming soon.

So far, Home2 Suites has nearly 500 hotels with more than 450 in development across Canada, the United States and China.

The 2011-created hotel brand was the first new brand introduced by Hilton Worldwide in 20 years.