Company Information And Significant Accounting Policies Narrative (Details) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012 States countries_and_territories Hotels	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010	Dec. 31, 2012 Construction in Progress [Member] Hotels	Dec. 31, 2012 Minimum	Dec. 31, 2012 Maximum	Dec. 31, 2012 Choice Hospitality India LTD	Jan. 07, 2010 Choice Hospitality India LTD
Number Of Operating Hotel Franchises	6,243			482
Number Of States Of Business Operations	49
Number Of Countries Of Business Operations	35
Number Of Owned Mainstay Hotels And Suites Limit	3
Prior Period Reclassification Adjustment		$ 1,800,000	$ 2,100,000
Equity Method Investment, Ownership Percentage						50.00%		40.00%
Franchise Agreement Initial Term In Years					10 years	20 years
Franchise Agreement Adjusted Term In Years	10 years				5 years	15 years
Advertising Expense	79,700,000	73,800,000	75,400,000
Prepaid Advertising	500,000	0
Book Overdrafts	(5,000,000)	(4,400,000)
Impairment of Intangible Assets (Excluding Goodwill)	200,000	0	0
Goodwill, Impairment Loss		0	0				200,000
Foreign Currency Transaction Gain Realized	(100,000)
Foreign Currency Transaction Loss Realized		1,400,000	200,000
Interest Costs Capitalized	$ 0	$ 0