Wyndham Grows Direct Franchising Business in China

Milestone comes as China looks to become world’s largest travel and tourism market by 2035; builds on Wyndham’s reacquisition of direct franchising rights for Days Inn in 2019

(Caption: Wyndham surpassed a major milestone in China, signing nearly 600 direct franchise agreements in five years. Pictured above (top row) is Wyndham Grand Shanxi Xiaohe Xincheng, followed left to right by Wyndham Garden Qionglai Downtown, La Quinta by Wyndham Weifang South and Hawthorn by Wyndham Dali Erhai Park.）

Wyndham Hotels & Resorts surpassed a major milestone in China: signing nearly 600 direct franchise agreements across the country in just five years. The achievement is a testament to Wyndham’s owner-first approach to franchising and increased efforts in recent years to reduce its reliance for growth on master licensees—a move underscored in 2019 when the Company reacquired direct franchising rights for its Days Inn brand in China.

Today, Wyndham is the largest U.S. based hotel company in China by number of properties, with a footprint spanning more than 1,600 hotels and more than 180,000 rooms across 13 of its 25 brands. In the first half of 2024 alone, Wyndham signed direct franchise agreements for more than 70 hotels in key markets including Beijing, Jiangsu and Guangdong. The milestone comes amidst a travel and tourism surge in China, where it is on track to become the world’s largest travel and tourism market by 2035, giving owners an opportunity to capitalize as guests look to explore the country.

“We have an industry-leading footprint in China, and as the country’s tourism segment continues to grow, it’s more important than ever to showcase the value of joining forces with the world’s largest hotel franchisor. Through direct franchising, we gain greater control over the consistency and direction of our brands in China while unlocking the benefit of building long-term relationships with franchisees—all of which are key to driving further expansion.”

- Joon Aun OOI, President, Asia Pacific, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts