ChoiceHotels.com, the proprietary web site representing worldwide lodging franchisor Choice Hotels International (NYSE:CHH), has been upgraded to include localized Japanese content.

This new enhancement allows Japanese-speaking travelers to access information about Choice Hotels and its brands, to e-mail Japanese-speaking contacts in the Australia reservations center, and to view the electronic brochures of Japanese hotels in their native language.

When consumers access ChoiceHotels.com, the new Japanese content is automatically presented if the consumers` Web browser is set for Japanese language. Consumers can choose the Japanese language icon from the homepage of ChoiceHotels.com, or directly access the URL: http://japan.choicehotels.com.

Visitors to the updated version of ChoiceHotels.com may now choose between five languages: French, Spanish, German, Japanese and English. Unlike the other translations, the Japanese visitors will be given a telephone number or fax number for booking hotels in Japanese. Online bookings are conducted in English.

“With more than 400 hotels in the Asia Pacific region and growing, it seems like a logical progression to include Japanese as a language option offered on ChoiceHotels.com,” said Mary Beth Knight, vice president of e-commerce for Choice Hotels. “By offering limited Japanese language information and the full reservations capabilities of our web site in four other languages, we are marketing our franchisees` hotels to millions of potential new guests.”

Translations.com, a New York-based firm, was hired to actually translate the site into Japanese with oversight provided by Choice Hotels` international division staff and partners.

Choice Hotels International is the world`s second largest lodging franchisor, marketing more than 5,000 hotels open or under development in 48 countries and territories under the Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality, Sleep Inn, Clarion, Sleep Inn, MainStay Suites, Econo Lodge, and Rodeway Inn brand names. For more information on Choice, visit the company`s Web site at www.choicehotels.com.

Choice Hotels, Choice Hotels International, Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality, Sleep Inn, Clarion, MainStay Suites, Econo Lodge, Rodeway Inn, Choice Privileges and 1-800-4CHOICE are proprietary trademarks and service marks of Choice Hotels International, Inc.

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