Choice Hotels International Participating in First-Ever Industrywide Promotion to Stimulate Travel

SILVER SPRING, Md., May 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE: CHH) is participating in a unique one-month promotion through a specially created website, DailyGetaways.com, joining nearly 50 of America's top destinations and travel brands to provide once-in-a-lifetime experiences and tremendous values unavailable anywhere else.

Discover America Daily Getaways, a promotion of the U.S. Travel Association sponsored by American Express, runs May 3 to June 4.  Aimed at stimulating travel in time for summer, it offers incredible deals of up to 50 percent off product from leading travel companies and memorable experiences from popular destinations.

The Choice Privileges rewards program is offering nights at Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites and Cambria Suites brand hotels that will be available on Monday, May 17, 2010 through DailyGetaways.com.*

"We are very excited to be supporting this innovative program and look forward to welcoming travelers to our Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, and Cambria Suites hotels," said Stephen P. Joyce, president and chief executive officer, Choice Hotels International and national chairman, U.S. Travel Association.  "This is a prime example of U.S. Travel doing what it does so well -- working closely with a wide variety of industry partners to promote travel to and within the United States."

"Discover America Daily Getaways is a win-win for consumers and the industry," said Roger Dow, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association.  "With the challenges everyone has faced, the travel industry is coming together for the first time ever to provide a unique, limited-time opportunity for Americans to buy products and take a trip they may not have considered the past couple years."

Any U.S. resident 18 or older with a major credit card may purchase from an inventory of specially priced travel products offered by 25 leading travel companies related to hotels, airlines, rental cars, attractions and theme parks, dining and shopping, among others. 

Additionally, any American Express Cardmembers have the opportunity to participate in a daily Cardmember-only auction.  Cardmembers can bid on travel packages arranged by two dozen cities.

"With travel and tourism being major drivers of the U.S. economy, American Express is committed to supporting our partners in the industry, and this partnership with the U.S. Travel Association helps achieve that goal," said Shane Berry, senior vice president and general manager, American Express Merchant Services. "We're also pleased to provide our Cardmembers with this exciting added benefit where they'll receive access to once-in-a-lifetime travel opportunities. We encourage everyone interested in travel to visit www.DailyGetaways.com and take advantage of the great offers made possible by the travel industry."

DailyGetaways.com features travel offers for sale at significant value from a different leading brand each weekday until the limited inventory is sold out.  At the same time, American Express Cardmembers can also bid on a different unique city travel package being offered each weekday.  The auctions will begin each weekday at 10 am EDT and end at 10 pm EDT.

Upcoming products and auctions will preview five days in advance for consumers who want to be sure to capture these one of a kind deals.  Consumers can also signup for daily alerts at DailyGetaways.com.

Additional deals and special travel offers from Daily Getaway participants are available on DiscoverAmerica.com, the official travel and tourism website of the United States. DiscoverAmerica.com is the nation's most authoritative source of travel information on all 50 states and more than 120 U.S. cities and includes unique trip-planning tools to help travelers plan vacations.  

About Choice Hotels

Choice Hotels International, Inc. franchises more than 6,000 hotels, representing more than 485,000 rooms, in the United States and more than 35 other countries and territories.  As of March 31, 2010, more than 600 hotels are under construction, awaiting conversion or approved for development in the United States, representing more than 52,000 rooms, and more than 100 hotels, representing approximately 8,200 rooms, are under construction, awaiting conversion or approved for development in more than 20 other countries and territories.  The company's Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality, Sleep Inn, Clarion, Cambria Suites, MainStay Suites, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, Econo Lodge and Rodeway Inn brands serve guests worldwide.  In addition, via its Ascend Collection membership program, travelers in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean have upscale lodging options at historic, boutique and unique hotels.

Additional corporate information may be found on the Choice Hotels International, Inc. Web site, which may be accessed at www.choicehotels.com.

About U.S. Travel Association

The U.S. Travel Association is the national, non-profit organization representing all components of the $704 billion travel industry. U.S. Travel's mission is to increase travel to and within the United States. For more information, visit www.ustravel.org.

About American Express

American Express is a global services company, providing customers with access to products, insights and experiences that enrich lives and build business success. Merchant Services is the merchant network of American Express, which acquires and maintains relationships with millions of merchants around the globe, which welcome American Express-branded Cards.

About DiscoverAmerica.com

Discover America, LLC is a wholly owned entity of the U.S. Travel Association and operates DiscoverAmerica.com, the Official Travel and Tourism Website of the United States, for U.S. resident travelers and for international travelers. The international sites were developed under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Commerce in the five leading inbound markets to the United States. The website's content is presently available in five languages: English, French, Spanish, German and Japanese. For more information, visit www.DiscoverAmerica.com.

Choice Hotels, Choice Hotels International, Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality, Sleep Inn, Clarion, Cambria Suites, MainStay Suites, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, Econo Lodge, Rodeway Inn and Ascend Collection are proprietary trademarks and service marks of Choice Hotels International.

*Requires valid Choice Privileges membership.  If you are not already a member, you can join for free at choiceprivileges.com. Within five (5) business days from date of purchase, you will have the applicable amount of Choice Privileges points deposited into the Choice Privileges account provided at time of purchase which can be redeemed for the stay package.

SOURCE Choice Hotels International, Inc.