January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report WiZones Announces 1,000th High-Speed Internet Access Subscriber at Waltham’s Courtyard by Marriott  Newton, MA – January 23, 2003 - WiZones, a provider of High-Speed Internet Access (HSIA) solutions for the hospitality industry and broader hotspot market, announces today that it has already reached1,000 subscribers, just a few months after implementing this amenity at Waltham’s Courtyard by Marriott.  Waltham’s Courtyard by Marriott is situated in Waltham, Massachusetts, in the heart of America’s Technology Highway (a.k.a. Route 128), and caters to just the kind of business travelers ...

The New Westminster Hotel's Smarthotel Technology Used as Leverage to Compete Against Large Chains / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report The New Westminster Hotel's "Smarthotel" Technology Used as Leverage to Compete Against Large Chains December 31, 2002 - Not only is The Westminster Hotel luxurious, it is also smart – smart in the sense that the new independent classic contemporary hotel located in Livingston, New Jersey, will feature cutting edge technology designed to enhance the guest experience and streamline operating systems.    Scheduled to open in January 2003, the hotel is the flagship for Westminster Hospitality Group, an affiliate of Kushner Companies in Florham Park, New Jersey, which is spearhea...

Hotels Look for Ways to Lure More Customers to Their Web Sites; Want to Take Back the Reins on Distribution / January 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Hotels Look for Ways to Lure More Customers to Their Web Sites; Want to Take Back the Reins on Distribution By Suzanne Marta, The Dallas Morning News Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News  Jan. 11, 2003 - For hotel companies that are trying to train potential guests to make their reservations on the Web, the news is both good and bad.  First the good -- online bookings are here to stay and are expected to account for 20 percent of all hotel reservations in 2005. That's double the percentage last year and a quantum leap over 2000, when only 1 in 20 reservations was booked on...

Waitress in Irving, Texas Killed Chasing Walkouts into Parking Lot / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Waitress in Irving, Texas Killed Chasing Walkouts into Parking Lot By John Kirkpatrick, The Dallas Morning News Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News  Jan. 9--Your money or your life?  That's an ugly question. And it's one that Dallas-area restaurant owners and staffers are asking themselves after a waitress in Irving died Friday after following a group of deadbeat customers into the parking lot.  From pricey venues to cheap eateries, owners and mangers are tightening and reinforcing their policies on how to deal with customers who "dine and dash."  Some local Denny's ge...

Marriott Family Trust AcquiresThe Sheraton Palm Beach at CityPlace Hotel; Hotel Will Undergo Fourth Name Change in 21 Years / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Marriott Family Trust Acquires The Sheraton Palm Beach at CityPlace Hotel; Hotel Will Undergo Fourth Name Change in 21 Years The Palm Beach Post, Fla. Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News  Jan. 9, 2003 -  WEST PALM BEACH, Fla.--The Sheraton at CityPlace Hotel has been sold to the family behind the Marriott Hotel chain in a deal that is expected to provide a big boost to the county's soon-to-open convention center.  "Marriott absolutely wants our business," Ken Foster, convention center general manager, told members of the Economic Forum, a business group, Wednesday. "Th...

Roadside Protect Offers Ala Carte Auto Club Services to Hotels for Guests / January 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report  Roadside Protect Offers Ala Carte Auto Club Services to Hotels for Guests Virtual-Agent Services Roadside Drives Away with A New Name Roadside Protect for all your Travel Security Needs Schaumburg, IL (January 23, 2003) -- Virtual-Agent Services (VAS) Roadside, high quality provider of private label and co-branded roadside services, announced today that it has a new name.  The company, which recently celebrated its one–millionth roadside assistance dispatch for such clients as GE Financial Assurance, Mobil Travel Guide, MapQuest and FreeTrip.com, will now operate as “Roadside Protec...

Canadian North Chooses Calgary-based VIP International to Provide Voice Reservation and Support services / January 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report Hotel Online  Special Report Canadian North Chooses Calgary-based VIP International to Provide Voice Reservation and Support Services Calgary, Alberta, Canada - January 21, 2003 - VIP International Corporation, a channel marketing company which traditionally works with hotel and car rental clients, announced today a business relationship of a different kind - its first foray into the airline segment.  VIP International announced a partnership with Yellowknife-based Canadian North, Canada's leader in northern air travel. Under the three-year agreement, VIP International will mana...

The 570 room Hilton Vienna Closing to Prepare for a € 61 (euro) million Refurbishment / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report  The 570 room Hilton Vienna Closing to Prepare for a € 61 (euro) million Refurbishment VIENNA, Austria (January 21, 2002) -- The Hilton Vienna is set to close its doors in February to prepare for a €61 (euro) million refurbishment, scheduled for completion in Spring 2004, making it the largest hotel and conference centre in Austria. The renovation programme includes a total upgrading of all 570 guestrooms at the hotel and the addition of new conference and fitness facilities.   Am Stadtpark, Vienna, Austria The Hilton Vienna is scheduled for re-opening in May 2004 The newly built ...

The Venetian Revamps Electronic Distribution Strategy, Signs with PS Hospitality / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report The Venetian Revamps Electronic Distribution Strategy, Signs with PS Hospitality™ Integrated GDS and IDS Program Repositions Las Vegas’ Premier Luxury Resort Alexandria, VA (January 7, 2003) –  PS Hospitality™, a leading hotel revenue generation firm, today announced that it’s providing Global Distribution System (GDS) and Internet Distribution (IDS) optimization services to The Venetian Resort-Hotel-Casino, the luxurious 3,036 suite resort in Las Vegas.  The Venetian selected PS Hospitality™ to implement its Driving Revenue ProgramsSM, a series of integrated hotel sales and mark...

NFL Rejects Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority Super Bowl Ad / January 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive NFL Rejects Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority Super Bowl Ad By Chris Jones, Las Vegas Review-Journal Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News  Jan. 14, 2003 - The National Football League has sacked Las Vegas' plans to gain national exposure during this year's Super Bowl broadcast.  Convention authority spokesman Rob Powers said the organization last year approached the league about the possibility of purchasing national time slots to air its new "Vegas Stories" ads during the Jan. 26 championship football game, which will be broadcast on the ABC television network. ...

The Valencia Group Opens the 213-room Hotel Valencia Riverwalk; Interior Designer Dodd Mitchell Blends Hip with Classic / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report The Valencia Group Opens the 213-room Hotel Valencia Riverwalk; Interior Designer Dodd Mitchell Blends Hip with Classic  SAN ANTONIO – January 21, 2003 - San Antonio’s scenic Riverwalk is home to the city’s only contemporary small luxury hotel, the Hotel Valencia Riverwalk. The Valencia Group, based in Houston, has opened the twelve-story, 213-room hotel in January 2003.  Nestled on the banks of the San Antonio River at Houston and St. Mary’s streets, Hotel Valencia Riverwalk caters to the individual business traveler and leisure visitor alike, and brings an exclusive bra...

Removing Limits and a Roll Back on Gaming Taxes Would Create 26,000 New Jobs in Illinois / University of Illinois Study / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report   Removing Limits and a Roll Back on Gaming Taxes Would Create 26,000 New Jobs in Illinois / University of Illinois Study  January 29, 2003 - A proposal by the Illinois casino industry would add $2.2 billion annually and 26,000 new jobs to the industry's already significant economic contributions to the state, according to a University of Illinois economic impact study released today by the Illinois State Chamber of Commerce. The proposal, A Better Deal for Illinois, would amend the Illinois Riverboat Gambling Act to remove limits on gaming positions at existing casinos and roll back gaming...

The $100 million Tuscany All Suites Hotel & Casino Opens in Las Vegas; Primary Market is Overflow from Nearby Megaresorts / January 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive The $100 million Tuscany All Suites Hotel & Casino Opens in Las Vegas; Primary Market is Overflow from Nearby Megaresorts By Jeff Simpson, Las Vegas Review-Journal Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News  Jan. 14--The big wooden ship-shaped sign that for about a decade advertised the never-built Caribbean resort on Flamingo Road, just east of the Strip, is gone, but a casino is slated to open soon on the 27-acre site.  Tuscany majority owner Charles Heers bought the property from the Howard Hughes estate in 1988, but struggled to arrange financing for a themed megaresort he h...

Tub-Rite, a New Product for an Old Problem / January 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report   Tub-Rite, a New Product for an Old Problem January 2003 - Tub-Rite is a revolutionary new product designed for that age old problem of dis-colored non skid surfaces of bathtubs and showers, a problem that has plagued the Hospitality Industry for years.  This patent approved new product cleans without any abrasives, works on any surface, is non toxic, and best of all saves you money.  For just pennies a day you can keep your tubs and showers sparkling clean and eliminate the costly expense of replacing or resurfacing your tubs and showers.  Tub-Rite™ - The Science These minute deposits...

TravelCLICK Acquires HotelRevMAX; Additional Data Products Will Further Help Hotels Maximize Net Revenue / January 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report TravelCLICK Acquires HotelRevMAX; - Additional Data Products Will Further Help Hotels Maximize Net Revenue Chicago, IL (January 20, 2003) – TravelCLICK announced today that it has reached agreement to purchase the assets of HotelRevMAX, including Hotel-Flash, Check-Pace and, in a separate transaction, the technology to power certain rate intelligence features that HotelRevMAX utilized for its Check-Rate report. HotelRevMAX (“HRM”) began collecting and aggregating various competitive hotel industry data in early 2000 so as to provide hotels with relevant information for making better revenu...

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report Hotelier’s 2003 Top Ten Internet Resolutions By Max Starkov and Jason Price, January 2003 How can hoteliers deal successfully with today's challenges and emerge as winners from the present travel and economic downturn?  PricewaterhouseCoopers forecasts full-year 2002 U.S. hotel occupancy at 59.5%, one of the lowest rates in the last 75 years. RevPAR for the year is expected to be down 2.3 percent and ADR will decrease for a second year in a row, the first such consecutive decrease since the Great Depression. For 2003 PwC expects only a modest recovery. RevPAR will increase by only 3.5%. ...

On Command and LodgeNet Reveal Top Ten Hotel Movie Lists for 2002 / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel OnlineSpecial Report  On Command and LodgeNet Reveal  Top Ten Hotel Movie Lists for 2002  On Command's Top Ten Movie List Jan 8, 2003 - Top performing titles in order of revenue generated in On Command’s network of more than 890,000 domestic and international hotel rooms are:  1) “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring”  2) “Ocean’s Eleven”  3) “Shallow Hal”  4) “Spider-Man”  5) “My Big, Fat Greek Wedding”  6) “Training Day”  7) “Harry Potter & the Sorcerer’s Stone”  8) “Monsters, Inc.”  9) “Black Hawk Down”  10) “The Bourne Identity”  As in re...

Interesting Trends in the Japanese Honeymoon Market; Hawaii Retains Top Location / January 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Interesting Trends in the Japanese Honeymoon Market; Hawaii Retains Top Location Bangkok Post, Thailand, Travel Column By Imtiaz Muqbil, Bangkok Post, Thailand Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News  Jan. 15, 2003 - Destinations in Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia, especially beach resorts, are having virtually no success in attracting the lucrative Japanese honeymoon market, according to the latest results of a bi-annual survey carried out by the Japanese tour operator JTB Inc.  The latest survey, covering October to December 2002, shows that the only Asian destination to h...

Ten Meeting Industry Trends for 2003 – Observed by Benchmark Resorts, Hotels & Conference Centers / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report Ten Meeting Industry Trends for 2003 - Observed by Benchmark Resorts, Hotels & Conference Centers THE WOODLANDS, TEXAS, January 2, 2003 … Benchmark Hospitality, which manages 26 award-winning resorts, conference centers and hotels in the United States, Canada and Japan, has released “Ten Meeting Industry Trends for 2003,” as observed by its properties. (See 2002 Trends) Trend #1  Technology Rules Demand for T1 lines, wireless Internet, and high-speed Internet access in guestrooms is becoming the norm for meeting planners today.  Customers are requiring more advanced technolo...

Teledex, Percipia Announce Strategic VoIP Alliance / January 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online Special Report   Teledex, Percipia Announce Strategic VoIP Alliance - Hospitality technology providers to co-develop, co-market VoIP products and services  San Jose, California, January 22, 2003 --- Teledex LLC, the leading worldwide provider of telephones for the hospitality industry, and Percipia, a leading provider of software solutions to the hospitality industry, today announced they have entered into an agreement whereby the two companies will combine engineering and marketing resources, in order to quickly design and provide leading edge network and endpoint solutions to the burgeoning hospitality Vo...

Developers of Proposed $42 million Marriott Hotel in Downtown Tallahassee Run Out of Time with City / January 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Developers of Proposed $42 million Marriott Hotel in Downtown Tallahassee Run Out of Time with City By Rachel Sams, Tallahassee Democrat, Fla. Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News  Jan. 30, 2003 - TALLAHASSEE, Fla.--The Civic Center Authority said at its Wednesday meeting that developer Tallahassee Hotel Associates is in default of its contract to develop a long-awaited Marriott hotel at the center.  The developers faced a deadline of Jan. 25 to apply for the necessary permits for the hotel, and they did not do so. The authority said it would not extend the deadline. The m...

Mike Szczesny, GM Holiday-Inn Express-Williamsburg Square, Pa. Receives Best of the Best GM of the Year Award for the Holiday Inn Brand / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report  Mike Szczesny, GM Holiday-Inn Express-Williamsburg Square, Pa. Receives Best of the Best GM of the Year Award for the Holiday Inn Brand STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (Jan. 22, 2003) — Shaner Hotel Group’s Holiday-Inn Express-Williamsburg Square, Pa. received the 2002 Six Continents Torchbearer Award and the Holiday-Inn Express’ GM, Mike Szczesny, received the Best of the Best GM of the Year award for the Holiday Inn brand. This is the hotel’s second consecutive Torchbearer Award, which is awarded to hotels that maintain the highest standards of excellence in hotel operations, guest services and pr...

Marriott International's Effective Income Tax Rate Dropped From 36.5% to 9.9%, Largely Due to Synfuel Production, According to October 10Q / Jan

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  News for the Hospitality Executive  Marriott International's "Effective Income Tax Rate" Dropped From 36.5% to 9.9%, Largely Due to Synfuel Production, According to the October 10Q By Paul J. Nyden, The Charleston Gazette, W.Va.  Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News  Jan. 2--Synthetic fuels, made from coal, are helping Marriott International improve its profits as demand for hotel rooms drops.  In October 2001, Marriott paid $46 million for four synthetic fuel plants. In this year's third quarter, ending Sept. 30, the hotel chain made $54 million more than it would have made without federal tax credits ...

San Diego Hotel Occupancy Less then Expected for Super Bowl; Room Rates Nose Dive as Weekend Neared / January 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive San Diego Hotel Occupancy Less then Expected for Super Bowl; Room Rates Nose Dive as Weekend Neared By Dean Calbreath, The San Diego Union-Tribune Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News  Jan. 28--Despite a raucous weekend for the Gaslamp Quarter, Super Bowl XXXVII turned out to be less than super for a number of San Diego businesses, with hotel attendance and tourist spending well below expectations.  Hotel occupancy levels and nightly rates were far below the peaks achieved in 1998, the last time the Super Bowl was in town. While estimates of the direct economic effect on Sa...