Accor opens High Rise Formule I in Kings Cross

From a traveltrade newsletter-

Formule 1 celebrates 10th anniversary with launch of first high rise city
hotel in Sydney's Kings Cross
Friday, 14 May 2004


F1 offers Sydney Opera House views at bargain prices

Accor's pioneering Formule 1 hotel brand will celebrate its first
decade in Australia by launching its first inner-city high-rise hotel.



Opening on 17 May, The Formule 1 Kings Cross will offer superb views
across Sydney Harbour for just $79 a night, making these the best-value
views the city offers.

The Formule 1 is the first new hotel to be built in the Kings Cross
area in over a decade and reverses a recent trend which has seen more than
2000 beds closed in the precinct over the past three years, as hotels have
been converted to residential apartments.

The new Formule 1 will meet increased demand for budget accommodation
in East Sydney and Kings Cross and is expected to attract a wide range of
travellers - from business travellers, leisure travellers, community and
sporting groups through to families.

Formule 1 Kings Cross is a slight departure from the traditional F1
hotel concept because it offers four styles of rooms:


a.. traditional F1 rooms with a queen bed and overhead bunk,
b.. rooms with a double bed and twin bunks (ideal for families),
c.. rooms with a double bed; and
d.. rooms with four bunk beds.

All rooms have ensuites and will be charged at the opening rate of
AU$79 a night.

The 115-room Formule 1 is just a short walk from Kings Cross Station,
an airport bus terminus and a wide variety of car rental firms and is just a
stroll from the CBD and the restaurants and entertainment of Kings Cross and
Darlinghurst.

The opening comes on the eve of the brand's 10th anniversary in
Australia.
The first Formule 1 opened in Campbelltown (south-west Sydney) in June
1994.
Since then, Formule 1 has become the benchmark in economy hotels,
consistently recording the highest occupancy figures in the industry.

Formule 1 is one of the fastest growing hotel brands in Australia,
located in city and regional areas, close to airports, transport and food
outlets.
Formule 1 Kings Cross is the 15th Formule 1 to be launched in
Australia and the 6th in the greater Sydney area.

Formule 1 sites set to open in 2005 include Perth Airport, Sydney
Airport and Gosford.

Commenting on the opening of the new Formule 1 Kings Cross, Accor's
General Manager of Economy Hotels, Roger Batty, said that Formule 1 had
changed the face of budget hotel accommodation in Australia.

"Formule 1 now provides the benchmark for quality budget accommodation
in Australia, offering affordable prices but with the benefit of a
guaranteed level of product," said Batty. "The economy hotel sector has
suffered in the past because of variable standards, but Formule 1 is
renowned for offering a standardised product that has proven very successful
with both the leisure and business markets.

"Formule 1 hotels consistently achieve over 80% occupancy figures, and
with Formule 1 Kings Cross able to offer such a wide range of room styles in
a prime location, we expect this to be one of Sydney's best performing
hotels.

"At AU$79 a night, and with many rooms capable of sleeping four
people, I do not believe there is any better value accommodation in Sydney,
especially as many rooms also offer harbour views."

Formule 1 Kings Cross joins a global network of over 650 Formule 1 and
ETAP (a related brand) hotels.

Accor is the worldwide leader in hotels, tourism and corporate
services, employing 150,000 people in 140 countries, with two major
international activities:

a.. hotels: nearly 4,000 hotels (more than 450,000 rooms) in 90
countries (including over 100 hotels and resorts in Australia and New
Zealand under the brands Sofitel, Novotel, Mercure, All Seasons, Ibis and
Formule 1) as well as travel agencies, restaurants and casinos;
b.. services to corporate clients and public institutions: each day,
14 million people in 34 countries use a broad range of services (employee
assistance programs, people care and services, incentive, loyalty programs,
events, food vouchers) engineered and managed by Accor.



--
Tony Bailey
Mercury Travel Books