Southern Expansion: U.S. Hospitality,Travel Brands Expand Into the Latin American Market
Economy lodging brands and airlines that are iconic in the U.S. have shown interest in Latin America, choosing to develop a connection with its southern neighbor and the independent islands that comprise Latin America.
United Airlines, the American major airline headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, has decided to launch a new, non-stop, daily service from Houston, Texas to the Chilean capital in Santiago. That's in addition to other Latin American and Caribbean destinations.
"The new Santiago service is a great addition to United's Latin American route portfolio," said John Slater, United's vice president of sales for the Americas, in a release. "these flights will not only give Houston-area travelers nonstop access to Santiago, but will also provide convenient one-stop connections at the hub to and from dozens of cities in United's global route network, including key markets such as Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington and Tokyo."
Flight 847 departs George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston daily at 9:35 p.m., arriving at Arturo Merino Benitez International Airport in Santiago at 10:10 a.m. On the return, flight 846 will departs Santiago at 11 p.m., arriving in Houston at 5:55 a.m. The flights use Boeing 767-300 aircrafts with a total of 214 seats and 30 flat-bed seats with 180 degree recline in united business and first class, and 184 seats in united economy, including 49 economy plus extra-legroom seats. Each customer on the aircraft will have personal on-demand in-seat entertainment.
In addition to the new Santiago service, the airline has also added flights to other destinations in Latin America and the Caribbean, including daily flights from Denver to Panama City, Chicago to Belize City, Belize and Houston to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. With the additional international connections to numerous other areas, United Airlines has a global route network that serves 62 destinations throughout Latin America and Caribbean, hosting 930 flights.
G6 Hospitality, which is best known for brands Motel 6 and Studio 6, will be introducing 55 newly constructed Hotel 6 and Estudio 6 properties by the end of 2020 in major cities across Mexico. G6 Hospitality signed an area development agreement with Latina Promohoteles, a subsidiary of commercial property developer Promodesa Comercial, which is based in Mexico.
Latina Promohoteles and G6 Hospitality plan to open up to Hotel 6/Estudio 6 properties by the end of 2020 in major cities across Mexico. The importance of this expansion is that it shows that businesses in Latin America, such as Promodesa, are uniquely positioned to launch new lodging options for travelers voyaging through Mexico.
Each new property will showcase elements of their signature "Phoenix" room design, unique features of the rooms include wood-effect flooring, platform beds and flat screen TVs, offering areas that are highly functional and space-efficient, with a modern décor that provides extra comfort for budget-conscious travelers. Hotel 6 and Estudio 6 will feature unique amenities that to respond to the unique needs of the Latin American travelers.
"We have been evaluating opportunities to expand our business to Latin America, starting in Mexico, where there's a unique demand and marketplace for a modern, comfortable, limited service lodging, specifically as it pertains to accommodating business travelers in key markets," Guillermo Estrada, Director of International Business Development at G6 Hospitality, said to Latin Post. "We're proud to partner with Latina Promohoteles, a subsidiary of Promodesa Comercial, which offers unprecedented expertise and vision in the retail space. By bringing together the equity of our brands with their in-market expertise, we have the key ingredients for success in this region."
Estrada explained that G6's expertise in network operations and knowledge from developing strong economy brands in the U.S. and Canada will help them bring a new and compelling contribution to Latin America, starting in Mexico. The company sees a great opportunity to meet existing needs in the Mexican market with an elevated, but affordable lodging option, and great experiences.
Latin American travelers will provide family travelers with a clean, comfortable and affordable lodging option, and G6 is excited about a possibility to create positive opportunities to engage these communities in the development and eventual operation of each location, which will certainly lend positive economic and social growth.
According to Estrada, the G6 partnership with Latina Promo hotels is an exciting start to expanding business to consumers in Latin America, with the first properties opening in Mexico by late 2015. At the same time, they are continuing to look at opportunities to expand Latin American brands into more countries in the future, including Ecuador, Peru, Brazil and Colombia.
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