Wyndham Converting Hotels in Austin, El Paso and McAllen to the Prototypical Wyndham Brand Design / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Wyndham Converting Hotels in Austin, El Paso and McAllen to the Prototypical Wyndham Brand Design  PARSIPPANY, N.J. (Jan. 5, 2007) – Wyndham Hotels and Resorts  today announced that is has expanded its presence in Texas, the state where the brand was founded, with new openings in Austin, El Paso and McAllen.   “The Wyndham brand is well represented in Texas with properties in the Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, Galveston and Arlington areas,” said Wyndham Hotels and Resorts President Peter Strebel.  “These three new, high-quality properties reflect the brand’s upscale p...

Multi-Systems Inc. Promotes Tim Tiller to President / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report Multi-Systems Inc. Promotes Tim Tiller to President PHOENIX – January 30, 2007 – Multi-Systems Inc. (MSI), a technology leader supplying integrated property management systems to the lodging industry, announces the promotion of Tim Tiller, MSW to president.  MSI’s Founder and CEO Rick Munson said, “We are honored to have Tim Tiller accept the responsibilities of president. I am a firm believer in values based on integrity and Tim has proven his high personal values and leadership skills many times over during his eight years with MSI. We are thrilled to have him represent the MSI team.” ...

Ted Cizma Named Executive Chef of the Grand Traverse Resort & Spa, near Traverse City, Michigan / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Ted Cizma Named Executive Chef of the Grand Traverse Resort & Spa, near Traverse City, Michigan  ACME, Mich., January 29, 2007 -- Renowned Chicago-area Restaurateur and Chef Ted Cizma has been named Executive Chef of the award-winning, 900-acre Grand Traverse Resort & Spa, near Traverse City, Mich.  In his new position, Executive Chef Cizma oversees all culinary staff and operations for the Resort's food & beverage outlets including three restaurants, and all menu and food planning and preparation throughout the property including banquets seating up to 2,000 persons.   Gran...

SynXis Generates Over $2 billion in Revenue for Hotels in 2006 While Adding Thousands of New Customers; Plans for 2007 include new product releases an

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report SynXis Generates Over $2 billion in Revenue for Hotels in 2006 While Adding Thousands of New Customers .> Plans for 2007 include new product releases and a major investment in infrastructure to prepare for the continued growth in customers and transactions SOUTHLAKE, Texas, 19 January – SynXis generated more than $2 billion in revenue for their hotel customers in 2006 and processed the highest number of transactions in its history.  SynXis, the Sabre Holdings (NYSE:TSG) business that provides reservation management, distribution and technology services for hotels around the world, continues ...

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report SynXis Chosen by Orient-Express Hotels for Distribution Services .> Worldwide Luxury Hotel Company Switches their 35 Properties to the RedX™ Distribution Management System SOUTHLAKE, Texas, 04 January 2007 – SynXis, the Sabre Holdings (NYSE:TSG) business that provides hotel reservation management, distribution and technology services globally, announced today that Orient-Express Hotels has switched to the RedX Distribution Management System for their 35 properties located around the world.  They have selected RedX to consolidate the management of all channels including GDS, IDS, direct call...

South Florida Hotel Rooms Still Available a Week from Super Bowl XLI Kickoff / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  News for the Hospitality Executive By Douglas Hanks, The Miami HeraldMcClatchy-Tribune Business News Jan. 27, 2007 - Despite plenty of pregame hype, Super Bowl XLI has already proved a disappointment for some hotels, ticket brokers and travel packagers who say South Florida hasn't produced the kind of fan demand they expected. Ticket prices seem to be the top culprit. StubHub.com calculates the average Super Bowl ticket now costs $4,500, a full $1,000 more than for last year's championship game in Detroit. No matter how much they love the Bears or Colts, many fa...

Miami Area Hoteliers Unapologetic About Super Bowl Room Rates; A Hampton Inn in Hallandale Beach Wants $599 per Night with Four Night Minimum / Jan

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  News for the Hospitality Executive By Tom Stieghorst, South Florida Sun-SentinelMcClatchy-Tribune Business News Jan. 18, 2007 --Looking for a hotel room for Super Bowl weekend? They're still available, but the prices are heart-stopping. A room at the Hampton Inn in Hallandale Beach will set you back about $2,400. That's a rate of $599 a night for a minimum of four nights, a requirement to reserve the room. Earlier this month, the same room went for between $179 and $229. David Berger, general manager of the 151-room hotel on Federal Highway, makes no apologies. ...

Renovations at the 34 Year Old Holiday Inn SunSpree® Resort Montego Bay, Jamaica Earns the 534 room Property the InterContinental Hotel Group

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Renovations at the 34 Year Old Holiday Inn SunSpree® Resort Montego Bay, Jamaica Earns the 534 room Property the InterContinental Hotel Group’s Annual Renovation Award MIAMI (January 16, 2007) – The Holiday Inn SunSpree® Resort Montego Bay, Jamaica, now considered one of the Caribbean’s greatest rediscovered gems, was presented with InterContinental Hotel Group’s (IHG) prestigious annual Renovation Award at the 2006 Americas Investors and Leadership Conference in Toronto. Mark Snyder, Vice President Holiday Inn Brand, presented the award to Guillermo Valencia, Regional D...

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report  Stars & Diamonds…Do They Really Matter Any More?  They Seem to Have Lost Their Luster By: Neil Salerno January 30, 2007 In the years before the Internet, it was financially impossible for many hotels to create an identity in the eyes of the public at large. Most hotels had to rely upon AAA and Mobile to define their quality and establish their public image. Consumers relied upon these rankings to short-cut the hotel evaluation process; the alternative was to phone hotels to ask a dozen questions, a real chore. Certainly most consumers know that a three star rating is better than two...

JER Partners, an arm of J.E. Roberts Cos., Planning 32 million Renovation of The Stanford Court, A Renaissance Hotel, San Francisco / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report   JER Partners, an arm of J.E. Roberts Cos., Planning 32 million Renovation of The Stanford Court, A Renaissance Hotel, San Francisco SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 25, 2007 - The world famous Stanford Court Hotel has been sold to JER Partners, a division of J.E. Roberts Company, a fully integrated private equity, real estate investment management company. The sale was finalized on December 14, 2006. Marriott International retains a long-term management contract and the hotel will remain within the Renaissance Hotels & Resorts brand.      "We're delighted to announce the sale," said Bill Love, the ...

The Next Evolution of SpringHill Suites Design Is A Collaboration Between SpringHill and Owners On the Franchise Advisory Committee; 155 Hotels Open a

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report  The Next Evolution of SpringHill Suites Design Is A Collaboration Between SpringHill and Owners On the Franchise Advisory Committee . 155 Hotels Open and Over 140 in Development Pipeline WASHINGTON, Jan. 22, 2007 - Marriott International, Inc. (NYSE:MAR) today unveils the stylish new SpringHill Suites at an exclusive gathering in Los Angeles coinciding with the American Lodging Investment Summit. Marriott International is enhancing SpringHill -- already one of its most successful and fastest growing brands -- to further distance it from the brand's competitors in the lifestyle...

Panama City Beach, Florida, Area Will Continue to Live and Die with College Students on Spring Break; No Replacement Market at this Point / January

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  News for the Hospitality Executive By Ed Offley, The News Herald, Panama City, Fla.McClatchy-Tribune Business News Jan. 23, 2007 - SOUTH WALTON -- The Bay County tourism industry for the foreseeable future will continue to live and die by college students on Spring Break. That was the blunt message to local tourism officials and business leaders at an all-day marketing retreat on Monday at Water-Color Inn in South Walton County to assess the upcoming 2007 tourist season and future trends in visitation to Panama City Beach. Neither a transformed Panama City Beach...

Sonnenblick-Eichner Company Arranges $136 million of First Mortgage Financing for Provenance Hotels / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report  Sonnenblick-Eichner Company Arranges $136 million of First Mortgage Financing for Provenance Hotels  LOS ANGELES, CA – January 16, 2007 - Sonnenblick-Eichner Company announced today that it has arranged $136,000,000 of first mortgage financing for a portfolio of six full service hotels located in Washington, Oregon, and Tennessee on behalf of Provenance Hotels. The portfolio includes the Hotel Max in Seattle and the Sheraton Tacoma, both located in Washington; the Hotel Preston in Nashville and the Westin Portland, Hotel Lucia, and the Hotel deLuxe, all located in Portland, Oregon.  The fi...

Choice Hotels Selects SoftBrands Portfolio Central Reservation System and Web Booking Engine / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report Choice Hotels Selects SoftBrands Portfolio Central Reservation System and Web Booking Engine  Reading, United Kingdom, Jan. 19, 2007 --  SoftBrands, Inc. (AMEX: SBN) a global supplier of enterprise application software for businesses in the manufacturing and hospitality industries worldwide, today announced it newest customer for PORTfolio Central Reservations System (CRS) and Web Booking Engine (WBE) in Ireland, Choice Hotels.  Choice Hotels has selected SoftBrands PORTfolio CRS and PORTfolio WBE to streamline its central reservations capability and simultaneously provide enhanced executive...

The Sofitel Hotels in New York and Philadelphia Sold for $255 million; Accor Remains 25% Owner and Continues to Manage the Hotels / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive The Sofitel Hotels in New York and Philadelphia Sold for $255 million;  Accor Remains  25% Owner and Continues to Manage the Hotels  CARROLLTON, Texas - Accor has announced the sale of two US Sofitel hotels located in New York and Philadelphia, totaling 704 rooms, for US $255 million to a joint venture comprised of GEM Realty Capital, Inc., Whitehall Street Real Estate Fund and Accor. Created in March 2006, the joint venture already owns six US Sofitel hotels in Chicago, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, San Francisco and Washington, DC.  Accor will remain a 25% shareholder in the ...

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report Do You Own Your Hotel Web Site? . Caveat Emptor – You May Be Surprised By Neil Salerno, January 2007 When something happens once, it can simply be chalked up as serendipity; but, if it happens over and over again, it’s time to stand-up and bear notice. The rarely discussed issue of hotel web site domain ownership appears to be popping-up more and more as initial domain name registration terms expire or as hotels create new web sites.   The question of site ownership is becoming a serious issue. Your web site’s address or domain is very much like a piece of real estate; it has an owner. Onc...

Shell Management Hawaii, Inc. Named One of Best Places to Work in Hawaii / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Shell Management Hawaii, Inc. Named One of Best Places to Work in Hawaii NORTHBROOK, IL – January 24, 2007 – Shell Management Hawaii, Inc. was recently named one of the Best Places to Work in Hawaii in a highly prestigious annual competition.  The third annual event honored Hawaiian businesses in its “Best Places To Work In Hawaii” program, sponsored by Hawaii Business Magazine, the Chamber of Commerce of Hawaii, and Best Companies Group. This was the first year that Shell Management Hawaii entered the competition. Twenty businesses were winners in the small/medium-size cat...

When Management of Room Availability Is a Priority, SensibleRez Has the Answer for Maximum RevPAR / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report  When Management of Room Availability Is a Priority,  SensibleRez Has the Answer for Maximum RevPAR . . January 17, 2007 - Chandlers Hotel in the resort town of Weymouth, knew that they needed an online reservations facility, but with only 10 rooms, it had to be easy to manage the room and rate availability. ‘We have used other systems in the past, but nothing has been as easy to use, or as flexible, as SensibleRez’ says Debbie Sare, Proprietor of Chandlers Hotel. ‘The online web access to the Back Office functions means that we can make changes to availability and rates ...

The Seattle Hotel Association Hoping to Top 2006 Fund Raiser Event Gross of $670,000; The 53-member Association Has Raised $3.1 million in its Ten-yea

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive The Seattle Hotel Association Hoping to Top 2006 Fund Raiser Event Gross of $670,000; The 53-member Association Has Raised $3.1 million in its Ten-year History of Charitable Efforts Feb. 10 gala to benefit first-time partner, Plymouth Housing Group   SEATTLE — Jan. 10, 2007 — They’ve planned, procured, and soon the 53-member Seattle Hotel Association (SHA) will unveil its tenth consecutive gala, packed with coveted auction items, high fashion, conviviality and an opulent dinner at its “Evening of Hope,” Gala on Feb. 10. This years event proceeds will benefit Plymouth H...

Legendary Sea Island Resort in Georgia Forces Myrtle Beach, S.C. Sea Island Inn to Change Name in Trademark Dispute / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  News for the Hospitality Executive By Dawn Bryant, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach, S.C.McClatchy-Tribune Business News Jan. 4, 2007 -What's in a name? For the Sea Island Inn on the Beach, about $30,000 to $50,000. That's how much the resort will spend on signs and brochures to become the Island Vista -- a forced name change brought on by another "Sea Island" 281 miles away in Glynn County, Ga. Turns out there's not enough room on the Southeast coast for two resorts with the "Sea Island" name. The Sea Island Company in Georgia, which has used the moni...

Group That Won Control of the San Jose Convention Facilities in 2004 Comes Under Scrutiny; Overly Ambitious Promises, Underwhelming Service to Clien

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  News for the Hospitality Executive By Deborah Lohse, San Jose Mercury News, Calif.McClatchy-Tribune Business News Jan. 21, 2007 - In the summer of 2004, San Jose handed control of its multimillion-dollar convention facilities to a public/private group formed by the head of the city's Convention & Visitors Bureau, hoping a more entrepreneurial approach would revive San Jose's moribund hospitality industry. The group won a five-year, $60 million contract by vowing to vastly increase convention-related revenue and eventually erase the multimillion-dollar subsidy ne...

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report     It’s 2007. Do You Know Where Your Hotel Sales People Are? by Brenda Fields, January 8, 2007 This past year proved to be another exceptional year in the hotel industry. The strong domestic economy coupled with record numbers of foreign travelers into the US, have impacted both the business and leisure segments, and all success indicators (occupancy, average rate, and RevPAR) are at record numbers in most urban markets. Although there are good sales people in this economy, it seems that a property’s success has little to do with the quality and expertise of its sales people. More oft...

Turkey Lake Partners, LLC. and Ryze Development LLC Co-Developing 260 Unit Condo-hotel in Orlando; The Sage Resort Will be Managed by Forbes Hamilton

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report  Turkey Lake Partners, LLC. and Ryze Development LLC Co-Developing 260 Unit Condo-hotel in Orlando; The Sage Resort Will be Managed by Forbes Hamilton Management Orlando, FL — (January 29, 2007) — Sage Resort, Orlando, Florida, is breaking ground within February, in preparation for their new Mediterranean-inspired destination Resort to open in Spring 2009.  Sage Resort at 9728 Turkey Lake Rd. will soon bring the spirit of the Mediterranean to Orlando, Florida, just minutes from area attractions. A single-tower collection of designer condominiums set amidst 5.4 acres of palm-filled gard...

Greg Mount and Brian Nordahl Appointed by Sage Hospitality to Direct Hotel Acquisitions; Company Plans to Double Portfolio by 2010 / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report Greg Mount and Brian Nordahl Appointed by Sage Hospitality to Direct Hotel Acquisitions . Company Plans to Double Portfolio by 2010 Denver, CO - January 11, 2007- Sage Hospitality Resources, the Denver, Co based hospitality company specializing in managing and renovating select service and luxury hotels, has appointed two veteran hotel industry experts to senior management positions. They are Greg Mount, named senior vice president of acquisitions and Brian Nordahl, vice president of acquisitions. In announcing the appointments, Ken Geist, Sage’s executive vice president said that Mr. Mount...