Hampton Inn

Hampton Inn and Hampton Inn & Suites are the names of a chain of hotels trademarked by Hilton Hotels Corporation. Most Hampton Inns are independently owned and operated by franchisees, though a few are owned and/or managed by the Hilton Hotels Corporation. Hotels marked Hampton Inn & Suites offer suites in addition to the standard rooms found at a Hampton Inn. Both Hampton Inn and Hampton Inn and Suites are considered limited-service hotels as they do not offer an on-site restaurant and do not offer amenities such as bell services and concierge found at a full-service hotel. The Hampton Inn brand primarily caters to the budget-minded business traveler. As of October 2008, the chain comprises 1,600 hotels. An overwhelming majority of the chain's properties are located in the United States however, international locations include Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica and Ecuador.

Hampton Inn hotels are usually characterized by multi-story stucco construction, though there are some exceptions to this in the midwest, historical locations, and some conversion properties.

History

Hampton Inns were originally owned by Promus Hotel Corporation, a Memphis, TN holding company that also owned Embassy Suites Hotels and Doubletree Hotels. In 1999, Promus Hotels was acquired by Hilton for $3.7 billion. Now, the Hampton brand is part of the Hilton Focused Service Group. The brand competes with AmericInn Hotels, La Quinta Inn/ Suites, Comfort Inn/ Suites, Drury Inn/Suites, Holiday Inn Express, Fairfield Inn by Marriott, and Baymont Inn/Suites.

The first Hampton Inn opened in Memphis, Tennessee in the summer of 1984. It was a two-story, exterior entrance building with 128 guest rooms. This hotel was located at 1585 Sycamore View Road. The hotel remained "The World's First Hampton Inn" until it closed in August 2005. At that time, the hotel was sold by its current owner and was re-flagged as a Ramada Inn.

Originally, Hampton hotels were given great latitude to customize the room decor and free hot breakfasts to suit local tastes. Since the acquisition by Hilton, nearly all of the decor, breakfast items, signage, and operating guidelines are all strictly dictated by the Hilton Hotels Corporation corporate offices.

Make it Hampton

In early 2004, Hampton kicked off a $100 million renovation of the entire Hampton Inn chain entitled "Make it Hampton". Focused on "raising the bar" in customer service, "Make it Hampton" was the chain's response to similar renovations by competitors Courtyard by Marriott and Holiday Inn Express.

Such changes to the chain included the installation of curved shower curtain rods in guest bathrooms, the inclusion of hot items to the daily continental breakfast and upgrading all of the chain's beds to the more luxurious "Cloud Nine Bed". The current slogan is "We Love having you here".

External links

* [http://hamptoninn.hilton.com/en/hp/index.jhtml Hampton Inn and Hampton Inn & Suites web site]
* [http://www.hamptoninn.com/en/hp/edirectory/popup.jhtml?adId=landinghx,edirectoryhx,30 Hampton Inn E-Directory]
* [http://www.hotel-online.com/News/PR2005_2nd/May05_HamptonUpgrades.html A Make it Hampton Press Release]
*Hampton Inn Reservations: 1-800-HAMPTON