The Inverness Aligns with Passkey to Gain Group Advantage; Planner gains more control over entire event housing process / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report The Inverness Aligns with Passkey to Gain Group Advantage . Planner gains more control over entire event housing process (DENVER, CO/QUINCY, MA) - January 23, 2007 - The Inverness Hotel and Conference Center, a premier International Association of Conference Centers (IACC) certified property, managed by Destination Hotels & Resorts, has selected Passkey as its online group reservations system.  Passkey was selected by The Inverness based on their track record as the industry standard for group reservations management, and because of growing planner demand. The hotel is known for providing cut...

Atlas Hotels Adds Passkey to Maximize Group Business; Town & Country and Kona Kai Resorts Offer Passkey to all Event Planners / February 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report Atlas Hotels Adds Passkey to Maximize Group Business . Town & Country and Kona Kai Resorts Offer Passkey to all Event Planners (San Diego, CA/Quincy, MA) – February 7, 2007 – Passkey International, Inc., the world’s leading online group reservation system, today announced that Atlas Hotels has agreed to implement Passkey at its two primary properties, the Kona Kai Resort & Spa, and the Town and Country Resort & Convention Center, both based in San Diego. Atlas Hotels will be able to offer Passkey to all its planners and events – from weddings, corporate events and meetings, to conferences...

Buyer of Executive Inn Turns Away a Meeting of Paducah (KY) Convention Center Board / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  News for the Hospitality Executive By Brian Peach, The Paducah Sun, Ky.McClatchy-Tribune Business News Jan. 10, 2007 - In yet another move shaking confidence in Bhupinder Singh's ability to follow through on his deal to buy the Executive Inn, he did not allow the Paducah-McCracken County Convention Center Corp. Board to use the Executive Inn as a meeting place Tuesday. "I won't speak for Mr. Singh, but it was made clear that the meeting would need to take place over here," board Chairman Jim Sigler said at the downtown Paducah-McCracken County Convention a...

Peter Nielsen Named General Manager of Oswego Hotel, Victoria, British Columbia / February 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report Peter Nielsen Named General Manager of Oswego Hotel, Victoria, British Columbia . VICTORIA, BRITISH COLUMBIA, February 7, 2007 – Bringing a wealth of leadership and hospitality industry experience, Boutique Hotels & Resorts of British Columbia is pleased announce the appointment of Peter Nielsen as General Manager of Victoria’s new Oswego Hotel.    Nielsen has worked in various capacities in numerous hotels throughout B.C. including the Poet’s Cove Resort and Spa on Pender Island and The Fairmont Chateau Whistler in Whistler. Most recently Nielsen was the General Manager a...

Orlando's $68 million Marketing Campaign Centered on the Slogan, "Built for families. Made for memories" / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  News for the Hospitality Executive By Beth Kassab, The Orlando Sentinel, Fla.McClatchy-Tribune Business News Jan. 8, 2007 - If Las Vegas can corner the market on tourists looking for a wild, slightly naughty escape for adults, then call Orlando the anti-Vegas. The region's new $68 million marketing campaign is a methodically designed strategy in which nearly every word and image was tested in front of groups of mothers -- the target audience. The result is kid-friendly and decidedly tame. But will it work? Some ad experts aren't convinced the appr...

Gary Sain, with Strong Background in Brand Promotion but Little Meetings/Convention Experience, Accepts Top Job at the Orlando Convention & Visitors

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  News for the Hospitality Executive By Beth Kassab, The Orlando Sentinel, Fla.McClatchy-Tribune Business News Jan. 25, 2007 - The recent search to find a new president for Central Florida' s largest tourism promotion board was marked by internal conflict over whether Orlando should focus on attracting more conventions or leisure travelers. Gary Sain, a local marketing executive with a background in brand promotion but little meetings or convention experience, last week accepted the top job at the Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau, succeeding long...

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Orchard Hotel Singapore Names Eric Teo - Director of Food and Beverage and Ruprecht Schmitz – Executive Assistant Manager   January 10, 2007 - General Manager Mr Eric Brand is proud to announce the appointments of the following key personnel at award-winning Orchard Hotel Singapore : Mr Ruprecht Schmitz – Executive Assistant Manager In his present capacity, Mr Schmitz assists the General Manager in the day-to-day running of the operation of the hotel and focusing on rooms division department. Prior to assuming his present position, Mr Schmitz was the Rooms Division Manager...

Meeting, Exhibit Space Tightening at Anaheim Convention Center; Anaheim Currently Ranks No. 6 in the Nation in Trade Shows. Expansion on the Way? / Ja

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Meeting, Exhibit Space Tightening at Anaheim Convention Center;  Anaheim Currently Ranks No. 6 in the Nation in Trade Shows. Expansion on the Way? By Sandi Cain, Orange County Business Journal Staff January 2007 Like Disneyland, convention centers never are complete. The changing needs of the industry, trade show trends and technology can alter the demands for meeting and exhibit space. . Anaheim Convention Center: possible expansion to create more meeting, exhibit space . Since the Anaheim Convention Center’s last expansion in 2000, meetings have become more education int...

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report Optimum Hotel Brokerage Announces Recipients of Optimum Hotel Brokerage Hospitality Management Scholarships . Four Students at Penn State’s School of Hospitality Management Awarded Scholarships Elkins Park, PA, January 10, 2007 – Optimum Hotel Brokerage has announced the recipients of its Optimum Hotel Brokerage Hospitality Management Scholarships.  The Trustee Endowed scholarships were awarded to four students at the Pennsylvania State University’s School of Hospitality Management, one of the country’s leading hospitality management programs. The Optimum Hotel Brokerage Hospitality Man...

Omni Hotels Customizing Sensory Elements to Maximize the Meeting Experience; Shaping the Environment to Align With Customer Goals / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report  Omni Hotels Customizing Sensory Elements to Maximize the Meeting Experience; Shaping the Environment to Align With Customer Goals IRVING, Texas, Jan. 25, 2007 - Omni's Sensational Meetings program, debuting this week, centers on truly customizing the environment surrounding a particular meeting to match its customer goals. Whether an organization is conducting a brainstorming session, a complex negotiation or recognizing excellence in the organization, Omni's Sensational Meetings program is designed to shape the sensory elements to maximize the meeting experience.      Sensational...

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Betsy O’Rourke Named Senior Vice President, Marketing and Communications for Wyndham Worldwide Corporation  PARSIPPANY, N.J. (Jan. 3, 2007) – Wyndham Worldwide Corporation (NYSE: WYN) today announced the appointment of travel industry veteran Betsy O’Rourke as senior vice president, marketing and communications.   In her new role, O’Rourke will develop corporate marketing programs, oversee Wyndham Worldwide media relations and employee communications and serve as marketing and communications liaison with the company’s business units: Wyndham Hotel Group, Wyndham Vacatio...

Renovations and One New Hotel Provide Gain in Hotel Meeting Space in Orange County, California in 2006; 50 Largest Hotels Provide 1.17 million square

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive  Renovations and One New Hotel Provide Gain in Hotel Meeting Space in Orange County, California in 2006 . 50 Largest Hotels Provide 1.17 million square feet in Meeting Space By Sandi Cain, Orange County Business Journal Staff January 2007 Disneyland Hotel No. 1 with 136,000  January 2007 - A flurry of renovations and one new hotel were behind the gain in hotel meeting space in Orange County in the past year. The county’s 50 largest hotels reported a 3% increase in meeting space to 1.17 million square feet, according to this week’s Business Journal list, which ranks ...

NORTHWIND Expands Maestro PMS with Advanced Resort Management Tools, Provides 360 Degree View of Your Guest / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  .Special Report NORTHWIND Expands Maestro PMS with Advanced Resort Management Tools, Provides 360 Degree View of Your Guest . Resort-wide ID cards, signature capture, gift-card management, online event booking and other modules leverage Maestro’s single-image database enterprise system . Markham, ON – January 23, 2007 - NORTHWIND, provider of the industry standard Maestro Enterprise Property Management Suite of hotel software and reservation solutions for hospitality, announced it is expanding its multi-module Maestro PMS hospitality automation platform with the addition of several new advanced featur...

We All Know What are Right Attitude and Good Service, But How Does One Bring Them About in Others? / Steven Ferry / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report  We All Know What are Right Attitude and Good Service,  But How Does One Bring Them About in Others? By Steven Ferry, January 2007 We all know what are right attitude and good service, but how does one bring them about in others? The answer to that question should be worth your attention, if not $64,000. The basic philosophy behind the answer is that presence precedes action both in terms of sequence and importance. Without the ability to be, one cannot do—an understanding that could have put Hamlet’s mind firmly to rest. It could likewise save many megawatts of energy on the part of train...

Every Time You Turn Around in a Casino These Days, Something Is Missing with Regards to Service! The 99 cent Shrimp Cocktail Is Long Gone But the Need

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report  Every Time You Turn Around in a Casino These Days, Something Is Missing with Regards to Service!  . The 99 cent Shrimp Cocktail Is Long Gone But the Need for Value and Superior Customer Service Remains by William “Billy-O” Orilio, MHS - CEO, Orilio & Associates, Inc. January 2007 The days of the foot-long hot dog and 99-cent shrimp cocktail are long gone. I doubt they are sorely missed. Neither was of any value. Not real value. Not player value.  What happened to player value? To put it bluntly: Who is the idiot that created the “No player card, no comp” policy? Why, ...

Peninsula Hotels Implements Unique Nirvana Technology Gift Certificates / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Peninsula Hotels Implements Unique Nirvana Technology Gift Certificates Atlanta, Georgia, January 18th, 2007:  Peninsula Hotels worldwide today announced that it has successfully implemented a unique Internet-based gift certificate program permitting ordering of gift certificates from any location for any property in any currency, all simplified into a quick entry on the Peninsula Hotels corporate web site. The ground-breaking financial and technology program was created by Nirvana Technology, Inc. of Atlanta Georgia.   The Peninsula Group also opted to have Nirvana Technolog...

Nikki Beach Owner Jack Penrod Embarks on Expansion Into Branded Hotels, Casinos and a Cruise Ship; Claims 8 Hotels Ready to Go / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  News for the Hospitality Executive By Christina Hoag, The Miami HeraldMcClatchy-Tribune Business News Jan. 30, 2007 - . Think Nikki Beach, and dance-until-dawn night clubs, champagne sprays on the sand and four-poster beds by the pool come to mind. Now Nikki Beach owner Jack Penrod wants you to think bigger -- hotels, resorts and even a cruise ship, all bearing the Nikki Beach moniker and its stamp of uber hip luxury. "We want to grow the brand. That's what it's all about," says Penrod, who opened the first Nikki Beach Club on South Beach a decade ...

Newport Creek Hospitality Named as Management Company for 5 Star Resort on the Beautiful Island of Boracay / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Newport Creek Hospitality Named as Management Company for 5 Star Resort on the Beautiful Island of Boracay Walnut Creek - January 22, 2007 - Newport Creek Hospitality, an international hotel management company with headquarters in Walnut Creek, CA has entered into an agreement to manage the spectacular 5-star Fairways and Bluewater Resort on the island of Boracay.   One hundred miles South of Manila, Boracay is considered the Hawaii of the Philippines, and its beach has been identified as one of the best beaches in the world by both Conde Nast and BMW leisure guide.  The res...

New Orleans CVB Announces Aggressive Rebranding Campaign to Focus on Authentic and Dynamic Culture of New Orleans / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report  New Orleans CVB Announces Aggressive Rebranding Campaign to Focus on Authentic and Dynamic Culture of New Orleans  NEW ORLEANS, Jan. 25, 2007 - The New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau is launching an aggressive, strategic marketing, public relations and direct sales campaign, designed to celebrate its authentic culture, lure domestic and international visitors back, preserve the city's leading industry (hospitality) and overcome misperceptions about New Orleans among consumers.      The campaign includes:        *  "Forever New Orleans" is an international branding...

Neptune Hospitality Advisors Arranges $30.5 million Loan for the Purchase of the Westward Look Resort and Spa in Tucson / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  .Special Report Neptune Hospitality Advisors Arranges $30.5 million Loan for the Purchase of the Westward Look Resort and Spa in Tucson SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - - January 5, 2007 - - Neptune Hospitality Advisors, acting as exclusive financial advisor, has arranged the senior financing for the purchase of the 244-room Westward Look Resort & Spa in Tucson, Arizona.  Neptune arranged the $30,500,000 floating rate interest-only loan through a commercial finance company.   Set high in the foothills overlooking Tucson and warmed by an abundance of desert sunshine, Westward Look Resort is a rejuvenating resort en...

The New Orleans Ritz-Carlton Completes $100 million in Renovations, Reopens 15 months after Hurricane Katrina; Big Boost to Big Easy's Tourism

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  News for the Hospitality Executive By Stevenson Swanson, Chicago TribuneMcClatchy-Tribune Business News Jan. 7, 2007 - NEW ORLEANS -- From the crawfish concierge who will teach visitors how to eat this city's characteristic shellfish to the "voodoo love bath" in the spa, the newly reopened hotel on Canal Street strikes a distinctly New Orleans note, celebrating a city still recovering from Hurricane Katrina. The reborn Ritz-Carlton hotel, which underwent more than $100 million in renovations during the 15 months it was closed, is a milestone in the comeback of a...

Houston Hotelier Nick Massad Jr., Presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the University of Houston's Conrad N. Hilton College Alumni As

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Houston Hotelier Nick Massad Jr., Presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the University of Houston's Conrad N. Hilton College Alumni Association and the Hotel & Lodging Association of Greater Houston HOUSTON, TX. (January 2, 2007) . . . Houston hotelier Nick Massad Jr., President of American Liberty Hospitality, has been presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the University of Houston's Conrad N. Hilton College Alumni Association and the Hotel & Lodging Association of Greater Houston. The award is presented to a graduate or honorary alumnus who has shown l...

NCL/National Content Liquidators, Inc. Returns to New York City to Conduct the Liquidation of the Prestigious Mark New York / January 2007

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report  NCL/National Content Liquidators, Inc. Returns to New York City to Conduct the Liquidation of the Prestigious Mark New York  January 2007 – New York - The Mark New York, located at Madison and East 77th, closed in December and will undergo a multi-million dollar renovation and redesign.  The property will reopen in 2008 as The Mark Hotel and Residences.   The project developer Alexico Group selected NCL to liquidate the items that are surplus to the hotel’s needs.  As the first phase of the project, the liquidation sale opened January 5th and features 180 guest rooms and suites of qu...

January 30, 2007

Hotel Online  Special Report   Hotelier’s 2007 Top Ten Internet Marketing Resolutions By Max Starkov and Jason Price, January 2007 This year at least a third of all hotel bookings will be generated from the Internet (29% in 2006, 25% in 2005). Another third of all hotel bookings will be influenced by the Internet, but done offline (call center, walk-ins, group bookings, etc). By the end of 2010, over 45% of all hotel bookings will be completed online (Merrill Lynch). Are hoteliers taking full advantage of this dramatic channel shift? Has the shift increased commoditization of the hotel product? Is there such a thing as c...