Premier Inn is a British budget hotel chain and the UK's largest hotel brand, with more than 50,000 rooms and 700 hotels. LSE-listed Whitbread launched the chain under the "Travel Inn" brand name in 1987 to compete with Travelodge (which was owned at the time by Forte). Travel Inn was merged with Premier Lodge to form the current business, solely owned by Whitbread. The subsidiary today accounts for 70% of Whitbread's earnings. Premier Inn operates hotels at a variety of locations including city centres, suburbs and airports.