With the competition in the budget hotel industry becoming increasingly fierce, each budget hotel is busying seizing the market in central China.

According to Chinese media, budget hotel brands such as 7 Days Inn, Home Inns, Jinjiang Inn, and GreenTree Inn are all increasing their expansion in central China, particularly Wuhan in Hubei province.

Of these, 7 Days Inn has announced its expansion plan for 2009 and it has said that it will continue to enhance its development in southeast, central and southwest China and will enter all the first tier and second tier cities in the country. Although 7 Days Inn says it will slow the rate at which it is opening new hotels, the total number of new hotels to be opened this year will be higher than in 2008 and will be about 150 to 180 in total.

(China Hospitality News February 19, 2009)