Best Western has completed an extensive redesign of its
consumer web sites, www.bestwestern.com, www.goldcrownclub.com, and its
NASCAR portal, www.bestwesternracing.com.Offering a more contemporary look and interactive style, the sites
provide visitors with customized navigational tools and search criteria
that make planning their next Best Western stay easier and more
convenient.  Guests can now select the standards by which they prefer to
view hotel options, such as by lowest rate, distance or availability.
Advanced qualifying searches using zip codes or airport cities are also
offered.  Once the hotel has been decided upon, guests can request the
format in which they would like to view pricing during the room
selection process - including charge per day; average daily rate; or
total stay.  Making reservations has also become much simpler and
faster, with the booking process reduced by 50 percent. 

“While Best Western celebrates its 60th Anniversary in 2006, we continue
to invest in the future, bringing a new standard of service to the
mid-scale hotel industry,” said Dorothy Dowling, senior vice president
of marketing for Best Western.  “As the popularity of the Internet grows
year over year, so too, do consumer expectations.  We believe our
recent web site additions and enhancements rise to the occasion, not
only meeting but exceeding our guests’ wants and needs.” 

To mark the re-launch, Best Western is offering online visitors the
opportunity to win incredible prizes by playing “The Traveling Tarot
Game.”  Participants will be given three virtual cards, which they will
click on to “turn over.”  If all three depict the same travel
destination, the winner will receive one of a number of popular items,
including an iPOD nano, a high-definition plasma TV, a portable DVD
player or a $1,000 Best Western Travel Card.  Customers can play the
game once daily now through Feb. 19, 2006.

In a dramatic overhaul of its online imagery, Best Western has also
introduced a series of 360-degree virtual tours and photographs for the
majority of its 2,400 North American properties, along with some of its
international hotels.  Visitors can now view panoramic displays of a
hotel’s exterior, a standard guest room, and a deluxe room/suite, in
addition to two other areas representative of the property, such as a
pool, meeting room or restaurant.  Virtual tours for all Best Western
hotels throughout the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean will be featured on
the sites by this summer.

A variety of informational material is now featured on the sites as
well, detailing the company’s numerous consumer programs involving such
partners as NASCAR and AAA/CAA.  Background on Best Western’s free
frequent guest programs, Gold Crown Club International and Speed
Rewards, are readily available to members, or those wishing to join. 
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