When must a Crowne Plaza franchisee pay the technology equipment costs?
Crowne_Plaza Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
o move to the premise-based Opera PMS upon the expiration of the hosting agreement with Oracle.
All Hotels will require a custom quote at the time the deployment process begins to better determine estimated costs. You must pay these costs before any goods or services are delivered to the Hotel. These cost estimates include: the basic hardware for the PMS and access to the Reservation System, the basic software, the installation of equipment and software, an initial training for your employees on how to use the PMS with the Reservation System, and the purchase, installation of and training for the NGP, or such successor payments program as may be implemented by SCH, equipment and software. These estimated costs do not include other training, additional equipment, additional software, additional operational manuals, shipping and handling, taxes, insurance, food, travel and lodging expenses of your employees, vendor employees, SCH employees or contractors who install the PMS and Reservation System equipment and software at your Hotel and train your employees to use them or the cost of internal Hotel cabling or infrastructure. SCH requires that you refresh PMS hardware/software every 48 months.
Holiday may consider requests to alter the requirements described in this Item. Holiday will only consider changes under special circumstances and any changes must comply with applicable laws.
Unless otherwise specifically noted above, all initial fees are payable (in full) before your Hotel opening, are fully earned when paid and are not refundable under any circumstances.
Crowne Plaza Concept Development:
Developing a unique Restaurant and Bar (R&B) concept is your responsibility and your concept must be approved by the Crowne Plaza F&B Brand Team. If you will be managing a restaurant independently (i.e., you do not engage a third-party R&B manager to operate your hotel's restaurant), you must pay SCH a R&B Concept Development Fee (which may be from $75,000 to $125,000 (which varies depending on your individual needs and management company capabilities).
Source: Item 5 — INITIAL FEES (FDD pages 27–31)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Crowne Plaza's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees must pay for technology equipment before any goods or services are delivered to the hotel. This includes the basic hardware and software for the Property Management System (PMS) and access to the Reservation System, installation, initial employee training, and the purchase, installation, and training for the NGP (or any successor payments program).
The estimated costs for PMS installation and required hardware range from $67,000 to $75,000 for hotels with 1-100 rooms, $73,000 to $90,000 for hotels with 101-175 rooms, $88,000 to $123,000 for hotels with 176-250 rooms, $126,000 to $158,000 for hotels with 251-350 rooms, and $176,000 or greater for hotels with 351 rooms or more. These costs can vary based on the hotel's number of guest rooms and technology needs.
Crowne Plaza requires franchisees to refresh PMS hardware and software every 48 months. The initial payment covers the basic technology setup, but franchisees should anticipate ongoing technology expenses for updates, maintenance, and potential replacements. Franchisees should also factor in costs for additional training, equipment, software, operational manuals, shipping, handling, taxes, insurance, and travel and lodging expenses for personnel involved in the installation and training processes.