Double-Digit Profit Growth for U.S. Hotels in 2004 and 2005; Strong Revenue Growth Overcomes Some Expense Concerns / PKF / February 2005

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report Double-Digit Profit Growth for U.S. Hotels in 2004 and 2005; Strong Revenue Growth Overcomes Some Expense Concerns Atlanta, February 24, 2005: The typical U.S. hotel achieved an estimated 13.3 percent increase in profits in 2004, and is projected to enjoy another 14.1 percent boost to the bottom-line in 2005, according to the 2005 P&L Forecast published by PKF Hospitality Research (PKF-HR). This improved profitability follows a three-year industry recession that saw unit-level hotel profits decline 36.2 percent from 2000 to 2003. Hotel profits are defined as income before deductio...

Original La Quinta Motel Slated for Demolition; Brothers Sam and Philip Barshop Parlayed the First La Quinta Into a Successful National Chain / Feb

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality ExecutiveBy Adolfo Pesquera, San Antonio Express-NewsKnight Ridder/Tribune Business News Feb. 11, 2005 - The building that was the nation's first La Quinta motel -- built for HemisFair '68 -- is being demolished this week to make way for a parking lot. But the original La Quinta at East Commerce and Elm streets was never just another has-been businessman's inn. Its trademark stucco walls started a company that called San Antonio home for 34 years. The motel opened at a time when travelers were in dire need of accommodations. San Antonio was hosting HemisFair, and the only other hotel under constr...

Orient-Express Hotels Acquires Majority Interest in the Grand Hotel Europe in St. Petersburg; Acquisition and Refurbishment Expected to Approach $125

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report Orient-Express Hotels Acquires Majority Interest in the Grand Hotel Europe in St. Petersburg Acquisition and Refurbishment Expected to Approach $125 million HAMILTON, Bermuda, February 10, 2005 - Orient-Express Hotels Ltd. (NYSE: OEH), owners of 48 deluxe leisure properties in 22 countries (40 of which it manages), today announced a major hotel acquisition, its first in Russia. The company has acquired the majority interest in the Grand Hotel Europe in St. Petersburg, Russia along with full management and operational control. This 301 room property is located on the fashionable Nevsky...

Orient-Express Hotels Ltd Appoints New Execs at European and North American Properties / February 2005

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report Orient-Express Hotels Ltd Appoints New Execs at European and North American Properties LONDON (February 25, 2005) – Orient-Express Hotels Ltd has announced several new appointments at its European and North American properties, including new management for its three latest properties in, St. Petersburg, Ravello and Santa Barbara. Thomas Noll has been appointed General Manager of the Grand Hotel Europe in St Petersburg.   This 301-room landmark property was recently acquired by the company on February 10, 2005. In Italy, Giampaolo Ottazzi has been appointed General Manager of t...

Optimum Hotel Brokerage Earns Top Sales Awards Presented at 2005 Hotel Brokers International Convention / January 2005

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report Optimum Hotel Brokerage Earns Top Sales Awards Presented at 2005 Hotel Brokers International Convention Las Vegas, Nevada, February 1, 2005 – Fairfield, Connecticut-based Optimum Hotel Brokerage earned many of Hotel Brokers International’s top honors for hotel asset transactions presented at HBI’s annual membership meeting held in Las Vegas January 27th through January 30th, 2005.  Joseph McCann, Optimum’s principal and president, was recognized for his firm’s exceptional portfolio and single asset sales production, creative deal-making, and total hotel dollar volume.  The awards were pr...

When Developing an Internet Hotel Marketing Plan, Try Looking At It from the On-site and On-line Perspective / Richard Walsh / February 2005

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report When Developing an Internet Hotel Marketing Plan,  Try Looking at It from the On-site and On-line Perspective by Richard Walsh, February 2005 Given the usual expert hotel industry reports that come out this time of the year on the 2004 results and 2005 projections, three things are very obvious and I must say very encouraging: For the Americas and Western Europe, 2004 occupancy is up and will continue to grow in 2005 and 2006. The average daily rates were higher in 2004, moving us back to the ADR levels of 2000/01. They are projected to continue their growth as well. The percent o...

The Five Biggest Resort Hotels on Okaloosa Island, Florida Are Open or Expected to be Opened by April / February 2005

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality ExecutiveBy Morris Fraser, Northwest Florida Daily News, Fort Walton BeachKnight Ridder/Tribune Business News Feb. 4, 205 - The five biggest resort hotels on Okaloosa Island are open or expected to be opened by April, according to their managers, taking up the slack caused by the loss of the Radisson Beach Resort. The Ramada Plaza Beach Resort, the largest hotel on the island with 335 rooms, is two months away from reopening, according to general manager Werner Brielmayer. "We're playing by ear," he said. "We're shooting for April 1, but we've had construction problems." The Ramada and the Holida...

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report Outrigger Completes Sale of OHANA Reef Towers to Fairfield Resorts;  . Property to be Redeveloped as Fairfield’s First Waikiki Resort in Conjunction with Outrigger’s Waikiki Beach Walk Development HONOLULU, OAHU, HAWAII – January 31, 2005 - Outrigger Enterprises, Inc. has completed the sale of its OHANA Reef Towers hotel at 227 Lewers Street to Orlando-based Fairfield Resorts, Inc. The two-tower complex closed on January 6, 2005, and the sale of the rooms portion of the hotel was completed on January 19, 2005. The complex will now be redeveloped as part of Outrigger’s pl...

OHANA Hotels & Resorts Completes $5 million Upgrade to the 440 room OHANA East Hotel, in Waikiki / February 2005

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report Discount Hotels London, Sydney, Rome, AmsterdamParis, Melbourne, Lisbon, Barcelona, Berlin, Hong Kong, New York, Auckland Discount Hotels London, Sydney, Rome, AmsterdamParis, Melbourne, Lisbon, Barcelona, Berlin, Hong Kong, New York, Auckland OHANA Hotels & Resorts Completes $5 million Upgrade to the 440 room OHANA East Hotel, in Waikiki HONOLULU, OAHU, HAWAII - February 4, 2005 - OHANA Hotels & Resorts has completed a $5 million upgrade to the 440 room OHANA East Hotel, located at 150 Kaiulani Avenue in Waikiki. The top-to-bottom refurbishment include...

Chuck Ocheltree Appointed Vice President of Operations for EMCVenues / February 2005

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report Discount Hotels London, Sydney, Rome, AmsterdamParis, Melbourne, Lisbon, Barcelona, Berlin, Hong Kong, New York, Auckland Discount Hotels London, Sydney, Rome, AmsterdamParis, Melbourne, Lisbon, Barcelona, Berlin, Hong Kong, New York, Auckland Chuck Ocheltree Appointed Vice President of Operations for EMCVenues Westchester, NY – February 2005 --  Jody Wallace, President of EMCVenues has announced the appointment of conference center veteran Chuck Ocheltree as Vice President of Operations for EMCVenues, responsible for overseeing the development of new E...

Ocean Park Hotels Building a 120-room Courtyard by Marriott and an Adjacent 93-suite TownePlace Suites by Marriott in Thousand Oaks, California / Febr

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report Discount Hotels London, Sydney, Rome, AmsterdamParis, Melbourne, Lisbon, Barcelona, Berlin, Hong Kong, New York, Auckland Discount Hotels London, Sydney, Rome, AmsterdamParis, Melbourne, Lisbon, Barcelona, Berlin, Hong Kong, New York, Auckland Ocean Park Hotels Building a 120-room Courtyard by Marriott and an Adjacent 93-suite TownePlace Suites by Marriott in Thousand Oaks, California THOUSAND OAKS, CA – Feb. 7, 2005 – On Thursday, February 17, Ocean Park Hotels will celebrate the groundbreaking of two new Marriott hotels in Thousand Oaks, California. ...

Pyramid Advisors Acquires the 423 room Hyatt Regency Oak Brook, Immediately Converts to Doubletree – Plans $15 million Renovation / February 20

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report Discount Hotels London, Sydney, Rome, AmsterdamParis, Melbourne, Lisbon, Barcelona, Berlin, Hong Kong, New York, Auckland Discount Hotels London, Sydney, Rome, AmsterdamParis, Melbourne, Lisbon, Barcelona, Berlin, Hong Kong, New York, Auckland Pyramid Advisors Acquires the 423 room Hyatt Regency Oak Brook, Immediately Converts to Doubletree - Plans $15 million Renovation OAK BROOK, Illinois / BOSTON, Mass., February 11, 2005 — The Hyatt Regency Oak Brook was acquired today by Boston-based Pyramid Hotel Opportunity Ventures LLC for an undisclosed amount.Â...

Orient-Express Hotels Reports Net Earnings of $28.2 million For the Year 2004 Compared with $23.6 million in the Prior Year; Maintained Worldwide Aver

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report Orient-Express Hotels Reports Net Earnings of $28.2 million For the Year 2004 Compared with $23.6 million in the Prior Year;  Maintained Worldwide Average Daily Rate of $366 HAMILTON, Bermuda, February 22, 2005 - Orient-Express Hotels Ltd. (NYSE: OEH), investor in 49 deluxe hotel, restaurant, tourist train and river cruise properties in 25 countries, today announced its results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2004. For the quarter, net earnings were $8.4 million ($0.25 per common share) compared with $8.6 million ($0.27 per common share) for the fourth quarter of 2003...

Tim Poster and Tom Breitling Could Split up to $150 million in Profits With Sale of Golden Nugget for $295 million in Cash and Debt Assumption to L

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality ExecutiveBy Howard Stutz, Las Vegas Review-JournalKnight Ridder/Tribune Business News Feb. 5, 2005 - A little more than a year after their purchase of the Golden Nugget landed Tim Poster and Tom Breitling on the front pages of national publications and in their own reality TV series, the dot-com millionaires agreed to part ways with the historic downtown casino Friday, accepting $295 million in cash and debt assumption from Houston-based Landry's Restaurants. The transaction gives Landry's, the operator of more than 300 restaurants nationwide under such brands as Landry's Seafood House, Rainfores...

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina Boasts 116 Golf Courses That Play More than 4 million Rounds a Year; For Years Treating Golfers Well Wasn't Essent

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality ExecutiveBy Alan Blondin, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach, S.C.Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News Jan. 30, 2005 - Phil Nagy of North Olmsted, Ohio, and John Brediger of Westlake, Ohio, traveled to Myrtle Beach on golf vacations for five consecutive years in the late 1980s and early '90s with groups of varying size. But over the past 12 years, they've taken their groups to the Alabama Golf Trail, Santee, Charleston, Columbia and Aiken, and last year they went to Augusta, Ga., for the second straight year. "The year after [Hurricane Hugo], they didn't treat us like they were glad we came. They didn't t...

Anuraag Mullick Elected to the Franchise Advisory Committee of Days Inn / February 2005

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report Discount Hotels London, Sydney, Rome, AmsterdamParis, Melbourne, Lisbon, Barcelona, Berlin, Hong Kong, New York, Auckland Discount Hotels London, Sydney, Rome, AmsterdamParis, Melbourne, Lisbon, Barcelona, Berlin, Hong Kong, New York, Auckland Anuraag Mullick Elected to the Franchise Advisory Committee of Days Inn February 1, 2005 - During the recently concluded Days inn annual convention in Orlando, Anuraag Mullick was elected to the Franchise Advisory Committee.   To be nominated for elections the nominee has to satisfy certain important qualificati...

Innkeepers USA Trust Acquires former Holiday Inn in Montvale, N.J.; Property Will Undergo $5 Million Renovation and Convert to Courtyard / February 20

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report Innkeepers USA Trust Acquires former Holiday Inn in Montvale, N.J.; Property Will Undergo $5 Million Renovation and Convert to Courtyard PALM BEACH, Fla., February 3, 2005 — Innkeepers USA Trust (NYSE: KPA), a hotel real estate investment trust (REIT) and a leading owner of upscale, extended-stay hotel properties throughout the United States, today announced that it has acquired a 190-room hotel in Montvale, N.J., for an all-in cost of approximately $23 million, including closing costs and anticipated capital expenditures.  The company said the property will be shut down during a plann...

Billionaire Ty Warner Plans to Acquire the Long-neglected Miramar Hotel Property in Santa Barbara; Ends 7 Years of Ian Schrager Control / February 2

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality ExecutiveBy Maria Zate, Santa Barbara News-Press, Calif.Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News Feb. 26, 2005 - Billionaire Montecito resident Ty Warner said Friday that he plans to add to his stable the long-neglected Miramar Hotel property, which has languished as an eyesore for more than six years. A contract "has been fully executed," according to Greg Rice, vice president of development for Mr. Warner's company Ty Warner Hotels & Resorts in Montecito. No purchase price was disclosed for the historic 17-acre hotel site, owned by hotelier Ian Schrager and Miramar Holdings LLC. Mr. Warner said in a...

Microtel Inn & Suites First Brand to Provide Free Long Distance Calls, Free Local Phone Calls, and Free Wireless High Speed Internet Access In All Con

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report Microtel Inn & Suites First Brand to Provide Free Long Distance Calls, Free Local Phone Calls, and  Free Wireless High Speed Internet Access In All Continental U.S. Guestrooms Atlanta (Feb. 1, 2005) - Microtel Inn & Suites - the all-newly constructed chain of budget/economy hotels - announced today that the wide-sweeping initiative known as 'Project Reveille' has been completed, and that all guestrooms in its hotels in the continental U.S. now provide free wireless high speed Internet access, free long distance phone calls, and free local calls for guests. (Hotels' ability to ...

MGM Mirage and Mandalay Resort Group Watch and Wait for Approval of their $7.9 billion Merger from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission / February 200

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality ExecutiveBy Howard Stutz, Las Vegas Review-JournalKnight Ridder/Tribune Business News Feb. 10, 2005 - Officials from MGM Mirage and Mandalay Resort Group are seemingly playing out a scene from Samuel Beckett's play "Waiting for Godot" in which two tramps anticipate the arrival of a mystery character who never appears. The companies are starting to get the same feeling while waiting for approval of their $7.9 billion merger from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. The casino operators are hoping to close the transaction by the end of March, and company executives are officially unconcerned that the...

Hospitality Trade Associations: What Have You Done for Me Lately? / John Hendrie / February 2005

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report Hospitality Trade Associations:  What Have You Done for Me Lately? By John R. Hendrie, February 2005 Just as our Guest/Visitors have choices for their Consumer dollars, so do we, as Hospitality businesses, when we select an organization to serve our best interests.  These may be civic, cultural, fraternal, professional, personal, trade or even marketing.  They are publicly funded, quasi, or private.  We look to them for leadership, innovation, representation and “bang for our buck”?  We anticipate our needs to be met and our expectations exceeded.  After all, that is Customer Ser...

Renaissance Mayflower Hotel Creates Permanent, Museum Quality Exhibits Throughout the Hotel; Features Stories Highlighting 80 Year History / February

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report Renaissance Mayflower Hotel Creates Permanent, Museum Quality Exhibits Throughout the Hotel Features Stories Highlighting 80 Year History WASHINGTON, Feb. 17, 2005 - On February 18, 2005, the historic Renaissance Mayflower Hotel is celebrating its 80th anniversary with the unveiling of permanent, museum-quality installations throughout the hotel that highlight the Mayflower's prominent past.  The hotel, which opened its doors on February 18, 1925, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, recognized for its architectural significance, as well as its historic distinction.  ...

The University of Delaware Conferrs Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters Degree on J. Willard Marriott Jr. / February 2005

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report The University of Delaware Conferrs Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters Degree on J. Willard Marriott Jr. February 2, 2005 - The University of Delaware has conferred an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree on J. Willard Marriott Jr., the chairman and chief executive officer of Marriott International Inc. The ceremony took place during the Nov. 21, 2004, dedication of the new 126-room Marriott Courtyard hotel on the University’s Newark, Del., campus. The hotel is a partnership between UD and the Shaner Hotel Group, which also is managing the University’s Conference Services, ...

January 30, 2005

Hotel Online  Special Report Kimpton Hotels’ Boston Properties Hotel Marlowe and the Onyx Hotel Expand Management Teams BOSTON, MA (February 22, 2005) – Kimpton Hotels’ two Boston-area properties today announced the expansion of their onsite management teams.  Kimpton has appointed Talin Kugu as Area Director of Revenue.  Thomas R. Thorn, formerly Hotel Marlowe’s Director of Sales, has been promoted to Area Director of Sales.  In addition, The Onyx Hotel named Nicole LeBoeuf as Director of Sales and Paul A. Sauceda as Sales Manager, and Hotel Marlowe appointed Kellie Ellerman as conference Services Ma...