Park Inn is the midscale, full-service brand of the Carlson Rezidor group. While I had heard about them before, I stayed with them because of their participation in the Club Carlson rewards program – and I liked it! Read on why I did and why you you should check them out!
So, who are they? Park Inn by Radisson is the lower-end brand of Carlson Rezidor, but still offers full-service (including restaurants) at a mid-scale price point. There are more than 130 Park Inn hotels around the world, with most of them in Europe!
In their own words, “Add Color to Life! Park Inn by Radisson® is a fresh and energetic mid-market hotel brand offering friendly and welcoming hospitality at a competitive price. We focus on what really matters: comfortable beds, spotlessly clean rooms, service with a smile and a hassle-free experience.”
That description is right on – the decor of the hotels and rooms is very colorful and they get the basics right by focusing on the room and the service.
So, why should I care? While there has been tremendous growth in the mid-scale hotel market over the last few years, most of it has been in the limited service segment – which means, you won’t find a restaurant on site and if there is room service, it’ll be most likely from a fast-food restaurant in the area. By offering a restaurant, pool and gym, Park Inn offers a little more than most of the others at this price point. The only competitors are IHG’s Holiday Inn (which is decidedly less colorful and “fresh”) and Accor’s Mercure (which has a revenue-based rewards program). If these things are important to you, Park Inn is a good bet!
I like the fresh and modern design of the Park Inn’s I have stayed at – I’d rather take a splash of color on the walls than flower print curtains and carpet patterns that make me dizzy, as you’ll find at many mid-scale US brands!
Many of the mid-scale brands only have one kind of room (like the Holiday Inn Express), but the Park Inn often has upgraded room – during a recent stay at we scored a free upgrade to a suite, an unexpected touch of luxury, courtesy of our Club Carlson Gold Status.
….which was the initial reason I considered a Park Inn in the first place: Their participation in the Club Carlson rewards program. With over 1,000 hotels around the world, great promotions to easily earn points and to get great cash rates and the Club Carlson credit card in the US that gives you Gold Status in their program, it’s a good program to be in. You can redeem for inexpensive properties like the Park Inn Cape Town – or aspirational properties like the Radisson Blu Le Dokhan’s.
You can read reviews of some Park Inn hotels here:
Park Inn Foreshore Cape Town
Park Inn Davao