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Choice Hotels Australasia has added five new properties across New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and Victoria.

Beginning 2014 on a strong note, Choice Hotels has increased its accommodation offerings across four states building on expansion plans it announced last year.

Choice Hotels Australasia’s Chief Executive Officer, Trent Fraser, told HM the new properties have been signed under a range of the company’s brands.

He said those joining the portfolio were the Comfort Inn Airport International in Canberra (ACT), Castlereagh Boutique Hotel in Sydney (NSW), Comfort Inn Sugar Country Bundaberg (QLD), Econo Lodge Adelaide City Park (SA) and Econo Lodge Portland (VIC).

“It’s always pleasing to add new properties across a number of different states and we look forward to working closely with our new franchisees to provide high quality accommodation,” Fraser said.

“We are constantly striving to identify and secure new properties to meet the demand currently experienced across the mid-market accommodation sector and in order to hit our own ambitious growth targets,” he said.

Fraser said a key focus for the company was Econo Lodge, which has risen to 30 properties in Australasia after only launching a couple of years ago.

“We are optimistic about Econo Lodge,” he told HM. “There is a lot of opportunity in the economy segment.”

Fraser said a couple more Econo Lodge properties would soon join the Choice family, a similar case for the company’s recently-launched boutique hotel Ascend Collection, another segment he was buoyant about.

Comfort Inn Sugar Country_BUNDABERG_4 - EDITED

It has also been revealed the newly refurbished and renamed Quality Suites D’Olive is also now open for business outside Melbourne’s CBD at Point Cook Coastal Park.