Continuing its western Canadian expansion, Coast Hotels &
Resorts today announced the signing of a franchise agreement with
Blue Light Hotels Ltd. to open an 80-room hotel in Williams Lake,
BC under the Coast Hotels banner.
Under the franchise agreement, the Fraser Inn Hotel located on
Highway 97 in Williams Lake, 285 kilometres northwest of Kamloops,
will be branded and renamed the Coast Fraser Inn on May 1, 2008
following a $2 million renovation of the property to bring it up to
Coast standards.
“The Williams Lake will be an important property in the
Coast Hotels & Resorts chain,” said Graeme Barrit,
President of Coast Hotels & Resorts. “The
property’s attractive location between Prince George
and Kamloops nicely complements our network of hotels in the region
catering to business and leisure travellers.”
“The Williams Lake property will be our second Coast
Hotel,” said Bob Mandair, President of Blue Light
Hotels Ltd., which also owns the Coast Discovery Inn & Marina
in Campbell River, BC. “Coast Hotels & Resorts has
been very good to deal with. They’ve got a great
reservation system, excellent market penetration and a strong brand
name.”
“We’ve got very high expectations for the
Williams Lake property and know it will be a very positive addition
to the community.”
The renovation will include new siding on the hotel’s
exterior, a new roof, compete refurbishment of the
property’s entry way and lobby, extensive room
upgrades, the addition of new windows, and detailed enhancements to
the coffee shop.
The property features breathtaking views of Williams Lake, a
fitness facility, Jacuzzi and Sauna, a 1,500 square foot meeting
room, and will include a refurbished coffee shop serving breakfast.
The hotel is attached to a Boston Pizza Family Restaurant &
Boston Pizza Sports Bar and there’s a Cold Beer &
Wine Store located next door which offers an extensive selection of
more than 250 wines.
Located in the heart of BC’s Cariboo District, Williams
Lake is home of the famous Williams Lake Stampede, which takes
place on the Canada Day long weekend. It is also in close proximity
to many historical sites and is a gateway to BC’s
untouched wilderness offering limitless recreations opportunities.
Williams Lake is the fastest growing community in the Cariboo
having a diversified economic base with forestry, mining,
agriculture and ranching.
The addition of the Coast Fraser Inn will increase Coast
Hotels’ room count to 5,888. In the last nine months,
Coast Hotels & Resorts has added seven properties and 695 rooms
to the chain’s room inventory. Included in these seven
properties are hotels in Osoyoos, BC, Sun Peaks, BC, Yellowknife,
NWT and Medicine Hat, Jasper (2) and Edmonton, AB (2). Coast also
recently broke ground and commenced construction of a 220-room,
four-star hotel in downtown Vancouver, B.C.
About Coast Hotels &
Resorts
Coast Hotels & Resorts is a leading hotel chain in western
North America. The company's philosophy of serving its guests
through a superior standard of value, hospitality and service
enables its continuing expansion. Coast Hotels & Resorts now
owns, manages and franchises 41 hotel and resort properties located
throughout British Columbia, Alberta, Northwest Territories, the
western United States, Alaska and Hawaii. Visit www.coasthotels.com
or call 1-800-663-1144 for more information.
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