Company Overview for Ramada Worldwide
In business for 40 years, the Ramada franchising company has a portfolio of nearly 900 hotels in 25 countries. It caters to market segments within the midrange category by differentiating its brands, which are
Ramada Limited, Ramada Inn and
Ramada Plaza Hotels and Resorts. All properties stress service, value and innovative programs.
One of Ramada's programs allows children younger than 18 to stay free in the same room as an adult family member. Many Ramada hotels also offer children's meals and services. A second program encourages families and businesses to hold reunions, weddings and corporate training sessions at the hotels by offering special group rates.
The Ramada Limited hotels are designed for budget travelers who don't need a restaurant or lounge on-site. The properties are located near highways and in suburbs, cities and small towns. A light Continental breakfast is part of the room tariff, and amenities often include a swimming pool, meeting space, and data ports and voice mail in the guest rooms.
Ramada Inn hotels are experiencing a burst of growth across the United States. Services and amenities at these properties typically include a full-service restaurant and room service, a lounge, swimming pool, and data ports and voice mail in the guest rooms.
Ramada Plaza Hotels and Resorts are the chain's premier properties, designed to provide a relatively upscale setting and superior value. Target clientele are both business and leisure travelers. These hotels offer all the amenities and services available at Ramada Inns in addition to fine dining and a fitness center.
To recognize properties that have excelled in specific areas, Ramada awards special status to its franchisees. The Pinnacle properties represent the top two properties from each of the 19 regions in the Ramada System. They are judged in terms of location, facility, attributes, interior design, amenities and service, and sales and marketing. Presidential properties have achieved the highest tier of recognition and are graded in the same categories as the Pinnacle Properties. Tour Group Friendly hotels are staffed by employees who have received special training in this segment of the hospitality industry.
Certain properties within the franchising system offer business-class rooms. These rooms are appointed with a king bed and a spacious work area with a desk. Amenities include a data port, voice mail, free local phone calls and incoming faxes, a coffeemaker and oversized bath towels. Breakfast is complimentary, and so is a weekday newspaper.
Ramada’s parent company is Cendant. Cendant recently split its company into four parts: Realogy, Wyndham Worldwide, Travelport and Avis Budget Group. Wyndham Worldwide controls Cendant’s lodging enterprise and is the world’s largest lodging franchisor by number of hotels. Besides Ramada, Wyndham Worldwide also owns hotel franchisors Amerihost, Baymont, Travelodge Hotels, Days Inns, Howard Johnson, Knights Inns, Super 8, Wingate by Wyndham and Wyndham Hotels and Resorts. Guests at all of these chains can earn points through a loyalty program called 'TripRewards.' Thanks to partnerships with Avis and Budget car rental companies, guests can earn more points through renting cars. The points can be exchanged for hotel stays, airline tickets, resort vacations, electronics, home appliances, sporting goods, movie and theme park tickets, and gift certificates.