17/07/2007: Hotusa Hotels becomes the third largest hotel consortium in the world

Hotusa Hotels consolidates its position as one of the major hotel consortiums at international level. The chain of independent hotels belonging to the Hotusa Group has reached third place in regard to the volume of establishments in the prestigious ranking comprising the 25 main companies worldwide devoted to marketing and booking services for the hotel industry, published by the U.S. HOTELS Magazine (www.hotelsmag.com), based on 2006 data.

The company increased the number of hotels by 8.6%, passing from 1,763 in 2005 to the 1,915 registered at the end of 2006. This growth has been maintained over the first half of 2007, at the end of which Hotusa has already exceeded the 2,000 mark in associated establishments, additionally making its debut in four new countries on the international scenario: in China, Venezuela, Montenegro and Croatia.

Moreover, Hotusa Hotels is the number one hotel consortium at European level since the first two places on the ranking are held by U.S. groups. This privileged positioning on the Old Continent was recently ratified on the annual ranking classifying the main hotel groups present in Europe, published by the French HTR Magazine (www.htr.fr), where Hotusa occupies an outstanding first place. In regard to the hotel rooms represented, the chain of independent hotels reaches a total of 171,390 and thus, a fifth placement.

In the 25 main hotel groups ranking, another of the Hotusa Group companies, Keytel, is consolidated in seventh place, due to the 1,380 establishments represented at the closure of the 2006 accounts. As for the number of hotel rooms, Keytel finishes in seventh place with 138,000 accommodations.

The companies situated in the first two places are the U.S. Utell-Unirez (9,348 hotels and 1,323,898 rooms) and SynXis Corp (8,000 hotels and 835,000 rooms). It is worth pointing out that amongst the remaining 25 companies comprising the Hotels Magazine list, prestigious groups are to be found, such as Leading Hotels of the World, Worldhotels or Relais & Châteaux.

On the other hand, the Hotusa Group is also present on another ranking of the U.S. magazine, that concerning the main international hotel chains. The hotel division of the group, headed by Amancio López Seijas, enjoys a 63rd place at international level - and 10th place at national level, thanks to the 68 establishments with which it closed last year. This division currently comprises 75 establishments, with 42 belonging to the Eurostars Hotels chain.