Ramada

Large hotel chain run by Wyndham Hotels & Resorts

For other uses, see Ramada (disambiguation).

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
Find sources: "Ramada" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (August 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

|

Ramada
Ramada Worldwide Inc.

Founded| 1953; 70 years ago (1953)
Founder| Marion W. Isbell and Michael Robinson
Defunct| December 31, 2023 (2023-12-31)
Headquarters|

Parsippany, New Jersey

United States

Number of locations

| 851 (December 31, 2022)[1]

Area served

| Worldwide
Parent| Wyndham Hotels and Resorts
Website| www.wyndhamhotels.com/ramada
Ramada Seoul Hotel

Ramada is a large American multinational hotel chain owned by Wyndham Hotels & Resorts. As of December 31, 2022, it operates 851 hotels with 120,344 rooms across 63 countries under the Ramada brand.[2] The hotel closed permanently in December 31, 2023

## Name[edit]

The Ramada name derives from the Spanish term rama (meaning "branch").[3] Temporary open-air structures called "ramadas" (meaning "porch" or "arbor"), made of brush or branches (similar to an arbor) were popular in Arizona during harvest time.[4] Company websites commonly refer to the structure as a "shady resting place".[5]

## History[edit]

This section may need to be rewritten to comply with Wikipedia's quality standards. You can help. The talk page may contain suggestions. (July 2016)

|

The friendly and balding Uncle Ben, on a Ramada Inn swizzle stick. In the early days, Ramada had branded on-site restaurants and lounges.

Longtime Chicago restaurateur Marion W. Isbell (1905–1988) founded the chain in 1953[6] along with a group of investors including Michael Robinson of McAllen, Texas (who later went on to start Rodeway Inns in the early 1960s) and Del Webb of Phoenix (who owned the New York Yankees and went on to establish his own lodging chain, Hiway House, in 1956). Other original investors of Ramada Inns included Isbell's brother-in-law Bill Helsing; Max Sherman, a produce operator from Chicago dubbed "The Tomato King"; Chicago attorneys Ezra Ressman and Mort Levin; and Frank Lichtenstein and Robert Rosow of San Antonio, Texas.[citation needed]

Early in 1952, Marion W. Isbell received a phone call from his brother-in-law, Bill Helsing. Bill informed him of a hotel deal in Flagstaff, AZ that he was going to invest in and wanted to know if Marion would be interested in joining him. This first investment resulted in a rapid return on capital.

Ramada opened its first hotel, a 60-room facility, on U.S. Route 66 at Flagstaff, Arizona in 1954 and set up its headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona, where the chain built the Sahara Hotel on North 1st Street downtown in 1956 (which later became the Ramada Inn Downtown) and a 300-room Ramada Inn in the 3800 block of East Van Buren in 1958 that would become the chain's flagship property and headquarters. Like his contemporary, Holiday Inn hotel-chain founder Kemmons Wilson, Isbell devised the idea of building and operating a chain of roadside motor hotels when, while on a cross-country trip with his wife Ingrid and their three children, he noted the substandard quality of roadside motor courts along US highways at the time. He had the idea to develop a chain of roadside motor hotels conveniently located along major highways which would provide lodgings with hotel-like quality at near-motel rates plus amenities such as TV, air conditioning, swimming pools, and on-premises restaurants.

From its start in the 1950s until around 1976, Ramada's logo featured a friendly bald innkeeper, dubbed "Uncle Ben". He sported an apron (later a suit and tie) and held a top hat in one hand; in the other hand was a red trumpeted banner that read "Ramada Inn Roadside Hotels". From 1976 to 1982, the chain's logo was a simple rounded rectangle that read "Ramada Inn" in the original design's gothic Western-style lettering. of the original design. From 1982 to 2004, Ramada changed to a revised, rounded rectangular design with more "modern" lettering.

At one point the chain was owned by Ramada Inns, Inc., a holding company set up by Isbell to oversee Ramada's various divisions including hotel operations, franchising, real estate, and equipment purchasing. Under Isbell's leadership, Ramada grew into one of the nation's largest lodging chains during the 1960s and 1970s with 100 Ramada Inns in operation by 1964, which grew to 250 in 1970 and nearly 650 by 1976. By the late 1970s, Ramada ranked as the second-largest hotel chain in the U.S. behind industry leader Holiday Inn. Also during the 1970s, Ramada expanded into worldwide operation by opening new hotels in various European nations and on other continents.

Marion W. Isbell served as president and CEO of Ramada until 1970 when he resigned from the presidency and turned it over to his son, William M. Isbell. The senior Isbell continued as the chain's CEO until his retirement in 1972, then Chairman of the Board until 1979. William M. Isbell would serve as Ramada's president and CEO until 1981.

Ramada developed a chain of in-hotel restaurants similar to the Howard Johnson's restaurants, operating them under various names including Uncle Ben's Kitchen, Ramada Pancake Cottage, and Chez Bon, as well as other names used by individual franchises. The company-owned Ramada restaurants became defunct in 1990, though the franchised hotels still include on-premises restaurants.

### Split of hotel and casino operations[edit]

In an attempt to revive the company's lagging business in 1989, Ramada Inns, Inc. decided to split its hotel/restaurant businesses and its gaming businesses. The Ramada hotels and restaurants were sold for $540 million to New World Development Company and the gaming business which included the Tropicana Las Vegas, Tropicana Atlantic City, and Ramada Express in Laughlin, Nevada, were spun off to a new company called Aztar Corporation. In the original deal for the gaming business, Ramada shareholders were to get $7 in cash per share plus half a share of the new Aztar Corporation. However, this changed quickly to a new deal where shareholders would receive $1 per share plus one share of Aztar Corporation. In the late 1990s, Ramada was sold to Cendant Corporation of New York City.

### Cendant/Wyndham ownership[edit]

Under Cendant's (and now Wyndham's) ownership, Ramada franchises Ramada Inn, Ramada Limited, Ramada Plaza, and Ramada Suites in the United States and Canada. Ramada itself no longer directly or indirectly owns or operates any of the Ramada hotels. Outside of the U.S. and Canada, Ramada hotels are owned and operated or franchised by Ramada International, which was owned by hotel operator Marriott International. However, in 2004, Ramada International was purchased by Cendant, giving Cendant the worldwide rights to the Ramada name. Ramada International remains separate from the Ramada operations in the United States and Canada. In 2006, Cendant spun off its hotel operations, including Ramada, to Wyndham Worldwide.

## Hotel tiers[edit]

Ramada hotel in Rochelle Park, New Jersey

The chain offers different hotel "tiers" based on price and services offered.[7]

* Ramada Limited—budget-oriented properties, typically with no on-site restaurant, though a pool and deluxe continental breakfast are standard. Some Ramada Limiteds consist of rooms mixed with suites or entire suites.
* Ramada Inn/Inn & Suites/Suites—full-service properties with swimming pools, exercise rooms, room service, and free breakfast items. If there is no restaurant on site, a convenience store is usually on the premises. Some hotels have mixed rooms and suites, and a few are entirely suites.
* Ramada Hotel/Hotel & Suites/Hotel & Resort—found only outside the US, these are full-service hotels with room service, a full-service restaurant, and fully developed fitness centers. Many of the international hotels also offer suites in addition to rooms, and a few have a resort and hotel together.
* Ramada Plaza—lower "upscale" properties offering business centers, full restaurants, enhanced room service, and concierges at many locations.
* Ramada Resorts—found in locations outside the USA; located in tourist destinations and high-traffic locations.

One of the "tiers" is no longer part of Ramada:

* Ramada Renaissance—a division of upscale businesses and resort hotels begun in 1982. When Ramada was sold in 1989, the new owners divided the Renaissance Hotels brand into its own chain and then sold it to Marriott in 1997.

## International[edit]

Ramada Colombo, January 2016.

In Australia, Ramada Inn Parkville was a traditional motel in Parkville, Melbourne affiliated with the Australian "Golden Chain" group of hotels and motels. It underwent extensive renovation at one point but was known locally for its use of the Uncle Ben vintage logo and idiosyncratic abbreviation of the word "kilometre" on its signage. The motel was rebranded in c.2006–09 as "Parade Inn" and was demolished less than a decade later, making way for a residential development.

In the United Kingdom, Jarvis Hotels Ltd were the largest franchisee of the Ramada brand. They operated corporately as "Ramada Jarvis Hotels". Six of the properties were bannered as Country Collection hotels; they are properties that were historic buildings that had been owned by local business magnates and in beautiful landscaped gardens. Ramada Jarvis went into liquidation in September 2011, ceasing trade on every hotel formerly franchised from Ramada. Ramada's United Kingdom operations came to an end. Shortly after, selected Days Hotels were rebranded as Ramada hotels, bringing the brand back to the United Kingdom.

Ramada manages three properties in Indonesia. Two are located at Bali, and one at Surakarta.

Ramada International manages three hotels on Sri Lanka's western coast, under the "Ramada" name, including one in Sri Lanka's capital Colombo. The Ramada Colombo used to be the Holiday Inn Colombo but management has changed.

Ramada International also operates three hotels in Pakistan, under the same name "Ramada", in cities including Karachi, Islamabad, Lahore and Multan. Ramada Lahore Gulberg II is opening soon in 2020. Ramada Lahore is opening on Cooper Road in 2023.

Ramada manages one property in Mongolia, which is located in the capital city of Ulaanbaatar.

It was announced that Ramada would open new units in Brazil by 2016.

A new hotel is to be opened in Nepal by AB holdings under Wyndham by Ramada.

## See also[edit]

* Ramada International

## References[edit]

1. ^ http://d18rn0p25nwr6d.cloudfront.net/CIK-0001722684/07a66b37-b5b1-4c86-9949-cba03f9f3417.pdf[bare URL PDF]
2. ^ "Wyndam Hotels 10-K" (PDF).
3. ^ Bartleby.com Archived 2008-10-11 at the Wayback Machine
4. ^ Findarticles.com
5. ^ "Travelsites.com". Archived from the original on 2008-08-21. Retrieved 2008-08-19.
6. ^ Ap (1988-10-22). "Marion Isbell, 83, Founder of Chain Of Ramada Motels". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-04-14.
7. ^ Ramada: President's letter

## External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ramada.

* Ramada (U.S.A. & Canada) official website

* v
* t
* e

Wyndham Hotels and Resorts

Upscale|

* Dolce Hotels and Resorts

Lifestyle|

* TRYP

Midscale|

* La Quinta Inns & Suites
* Wingate
* AmericInn
* Ramada
* Baymont

Value|

* Microtel Inn & Suites
* Days Inn
* Super 8
* Howard Johnson
* Travelodge

Extended Stay|

* Hawthorn Suites

* v
* t
* e

Hotel chains

Accor|

* Luxury
* Banyan Tree
* Fairmont
* Orient Express
* Raffles
* Sofitel
* Premium
* Grand Mercure
* MGallery
* Mövenpick
* Pullman
* Swissôtel
* Midscale
* Adagio
* Mantra
* Mercure
* Novotel
* Suite Novotel
* Economy
* HotelF1
* Ibis
* Budget
* Styles

| Ennismore|

* DELANO
* Gleneagles
* HYDE
* JO&JOE
* Mama Shelter
* MONDRIAN
* Morgans Originals
* Rixos
* SLS
* The Hoxton

|

The Ascott Limited|

Best Western|

* Aiden
* Best Western
* Best Western Plus
* Best Western Premier
* BW Premier Collection
* BW Signature Collection
* Executive Residency
* GLō
* Sadie
* Vīb
* SureStay
* SureStay Studio
* SureStay Plus
* SureStay Collection

BTG Homeinns|

* Homeinn
* Motel 168

Choice Hotels|

* Ascend Collection
* Cambria
* Clarion / Clarion Pointe
* Comfort
* Econo Lodge
* MainStay Suites
* Quality Inn
* Rodeway Inn
* Sleep Inn
* Suburban Studios
* WoodSpring Suites

| Radisson Hotels|

* Country Inn & Suites
* Park Plaza / Park Inn
* Radisson
* Radisson Blu
* Radisson Collection
* Radisson Individuals
* Radisson Red

|

Global Hotel Alliance|

* Anantara
* Avani
* Corinthia
* The Doyle Collection
* Elewana Collection
* Fauchon Hospitality
* GLO
* Kempinski
* The Leela
* Marco Polo
* Niccolo
* Nikki Beach
* Oaks
* Outrigger
* Pan Pacific
* Sukhothai
* Sun International
* Tivoli

hihotels|

* Downtowner Inns
* Master Host Inns
* Passport Inns
* Red Carpet Inn
* Scottish Inns

Hilton|

* canopy
* Conrad
* Curio Collection
* DoubleTree
* Embassy Suites
* Hampton
* Hilton Garden Inn
* Hilton Grand Vacations
* Hilton
* Home2 Suites
* Homewood Suites
* tru
* Waldorf Astoria

Huazhu|

| Deutsche Hospitality|

* Zleep

|

Hyatt|

* Alila
* ALG
* Andaz
* Destination
* Grand Hyatt
* Hyatt
* Hyatt Centric
* Hyatt House
* Hyatt Place
* Hyatt Regency
* Hyatt Zilara / Hyatt Ziva
* JdV by Hyatt
* Park Hyatt
* Unbound Collection

IHG|

* ANA
* Avid
* Candlewood Suites
* Crowne Plaza
* Even
* Holiday Inn
* Holiday Inn Express
* Hotel Indigo
* InterContinental
* Kimpton
* Regent
* Staybridge Suites

Indian Hotels Company (IHCL)|

* Ginger
* Taj
* Vivanta

ITC Hotels|

* Fortune
* ITC
* WelcomHotels

Jinjiang|

* 7 Days Inn
* Jin Jiang Hotels
* Jinjiang Inn
* Louvre Hotels
* Metropolo
* Vienna

| Radisson (outside North America)|

* Rezidor Hotel Group
* PPHE Hotel Group

|

Marriott (list)|

* Luxury
* Bulgari
* EDITION
* JW Marriott
* The Luxury Collection
* Ritz-Carlton
* St. Regis
* W Hotels
* Premium
* Autograph Collection
* Delta
* Design
* Gaylord
* Le Méridien
* Marriott
* Conference Centers
* Executive Apartments
* Golf
* Marriott Vacation Club
* Grand Residences
* Renaissance
* Sheraton
* Tribute
* Westin
* Select
* AC
* Aloft
* Courtyard
* Element
* Fairfield
* Four Points
* Moxy
* Protea
* Residence Inn
* SpringHill
* TownePlace

Meliá|

Okura Nikko|

* Hotel JAL
* Nikko
* Okura

Pan Pacific|

Shangri-La|

* Kerry
* Shangri-La
* Traders

Sonesta|

| Red Lion Hotels|

* Americas Best Value Inns
* Canadas Best Value Inns
* GuestHouse
* Hotel RL
* Knights Inn
* Red Lion Hotels
* Red Lion Inn & Suites
* Settle Inn
* 3 Palms Hotels & Resorts
* America's Best Inns
* Country Hearth Inns & Suites
* Jameson Inn
* Lexington Hotels & Inns

|

Wyndham|

* AmericInn
* Baymont
* Days Inn
* Dolce
* Hawthorn
* Howard Johnson
* La Quinta
* Microtel
* Ramada
* Super 8
* Travelodge
* TRYP
* Wingate
* Wyndham
* Wyndham Garden
* Wyndham Grand

Others|

* A&O
* Ace
* Aerowisata
* Aitken Spence
* Aman
* Amaya
* APA
* Coast
* Apex
* Aqua-Aston
* Archipelago
* Azerai
* Azimut
* Bahia Principe
* B&B Hotels
* Beaches
* Belmond
* Budget Host
* Budget Suites of America
* Cachet
* Canad Inns
* Canalta
* Carlton
* Center Parcs Europe
* Center Parcs UK and Ireland
* Ceylon
* Cheval Blanc
* Cinnamon
* citizenM
* Citrus
* Club Med
* Club Quarters
* Cobblestone
* COMO
* Continental
* Corinthia
* Couples
* Dalata
* Dan
* Dedica Anthology
* Disney Parks, Experiences and Products
* Dorsett
* Drury
* Dusit
* easyHotel
* ExecuStay
* Extended Stay America
* Fiesta Inn
* Four Seasons
* Go
* Graduate
* Grecotel
* Hard Rock / Reverb
* Hoshino
* Hotel Sogo
* Iberostar
* InTown Suites / Uptown Suites
* Isrotel
* Jetwing (Symphony)
* Jumeirah
* Kuriftu
* Cordis / Langham
* lemon tree
* The Leading Hotels of the World
* Loews
* Lotte
* Magnuson
* Mamaison
* Mandarin Oriental
* Margaritaville / Camp Margaritaville / Compass Hotels / St. Somewhere
* Masters Inn
* MGM Resorts
* Millennium & Copthorne
* Minor
* Miyako
* Montage
* Motel 6 / Studio 6
* Motel One
* NH
* Oberoi
* Trident
* Oetker Collection
* Omni
* OYO Rooms
* Paradores
* The Peninsula
* Penta Hotels
* Pestana
* Pousadas de Portugal
* Preferred
* Premier Inn
* Prime Plaza
* Prince
* QT
* Red Planet
* Red Roof Inn / Red Roof Plus / The Red Collection / HomeTowne Studios
* RIU
* Rocco Forte
* Rosewood
* Rotana
* Royal Orchid
* Rydges
* Sahid
* Sandals
* Beaches
* Sandman
* Santika Indonesia
* Scandic
* Seda
* Serena
* Sonder
* Soneva
* Standard
* Starhotels
* Summit
* Sutton Place
* Swiss-Belhotel
* Thistle
* Thon
* Toyoko Inn
* Travelodge UK
* Trump
* Tune
* Virgin
* Warwick
* Yotel

Defunct|

* Adam's Mark
* Alamo Plaza Hotel Courts
* Allegro Resorts
* AmeriHost Inn
* AmeriSuites
* Crest
* Cross Country Inn
* Denizen
* Esso Motor Hotel
* Exel Inn
* Forte
* Fred Harvey
* Friendship Inn
* Great Southern
* Hiway House
* Imperial 400
* Jack Tar
* Nickelodeon Resorts by Marriott
* Parliament House Motor Inn
* Real Hotel Company
* Roundtowner Inn
* Royal Inns of America
* Shoney's Inn
* Starwood
* Statler
* Summerfield Suites
* Susse Chalet
* Tage Inn
* United Hotels Company of America
* Vantage Hospitality
* Wilson World

* Category

Authority control databases

International|

* VIAF

National|

* United States
* 2

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template