IHG Hotels & Resorts is adding another property to its Thailand lineup. The company has signed a deal to convert an existing 158-room hotel in Ao Nang, Krabi, into a Holiday Inn Express. The property, developed with longtime partner Chok Deesuk Co., Ltd., is set to reopen under the new brand by the end of 2026.
This is not a new relationship. Chok Deesuk already owns the nearby Holiday Inn Resort Krabi Ao Nang Beach, and the two companies are simply doubling down on a partnership that has worked so far. Once rebranded, the hotel will become the first Holiday Inn Express in Thailand, and the second in Southeast Asia, to use IHG’s newer Gen 5 design, which favors open, flexible spaces over the more boxed-in layouts of older properties.
Why Ao Nang, and Why Now
Ao Nang is a well-worn stop for beach travelers, sitting close to Railay Beach and serving as the jumping-off point for boat trips to Poda, Chicken, and Hong islands. The hotel itself sits about a kilometer from the beach, on a busy commercial street lined with shops and restaurants, and roughly 40 minutes from Krabi International Airport by car. That combination of walkability and access seems to be the draw for IHG here.
Conversions like this one are becoming a bigger part of IHG’s Thailand strategy. Nearly 40 percent of the company’s signed hotel keys in the country in 2025 came from converting existing properties rather than building new ones. It’s a faster, cheaper way to grow, and owners appear to be buying into the pitch: fewer construction headaches, plus access to IHG’s booking system and its loyalty program, which counts more than 160 million members worldwide.
What Guests Can Expect
Once the rebrand is finished, the hotel will offer:
- An all-day dining restaurant
- A pool bar
- A swimming pool
- A fitness center
Nothing unusual for the segment, but solid basics for a beach town hotel aimed at families and couples rather than luxury travelers.
Pathana Jitsaereetham, IHG’s Development Director for Thailand, framed the signing as a vote of confidence from ownership groups in the region. IHG now runs 42 hotels across 11 brands in Thailand, with another 39 in the pipeline, so the company clearly isn’t slowing down its push into the country’s tourism market anytime soon.
For Krabi specifically, this signing gives Chok Deesuk two properties under the IHG umbrella in the same beach town, one upscale resort and one more budget-friendly option, covering more ground with travelers who have different budgets but the same destination in mind.
