About B&B Hotels Echalot
Hotel chain B&B Hotels first started its operation in 1990 in Brittany, France. Its unique ‘Econochics’ hotel concept which was first showcased in Brest and Saint-Malo attracted large crowds. It was the first budget hotel to offer family rooms that can accommodate up to four guests. Each of its rooms offers supreme comfort featuring private bathrooms with a shower, and sizable toilet and sink at affordable rates.
The years that have followed saw this ‘high-end’ budget hotel chain expanding to more than 400 hotels in various European countries. Its first expansion happened in Ingolstadt, Germany, in 1998. It made another significant milestone a few months after when it launched www.hotelbb.com, making it the first of its kind to offer customers offer real-time bookings. Other European countries where B&B Hotels is present are Italy, Morocco, Poland, Spain, and Portugal. In 2007, it welcomed 57 hotels in its portfolio by acquiring budget chain The Villages Hotel.
A more significant expansion was brought about by the acquisition of the American multinational Company Carlyle Group of the hotel chain serving business and leisure travelers for roughly $543 billion (€480 million) on September 28, 2010. Its latest expansion was in the Czech Republic, Prague in 2015. Before the acquisition, B&B only operated 223 hotels with 16,162 total rooms.
