Hotels with Wood Burning Fireplaces Switching from Firewood to Densified Wood; Supports Pollution Reduction Without Compromising Amenity / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report Hotels with Wood Burning Fireplaces Switching from Firewood to Densified Wood; Supports Pollution Reduction Without Compromising Amenity LOS GATOS, CALIFORNIA, JANUARY 6, 2003 --- This winter, stricter EPA air quality standards have gone into effect governing levels of particulate matter (soot) and other pollutants from firewood burning. Now, hospitality establishments with wood-burning fireplaces can help keep smoke emissions down and support pollution reduction efforts without compromising this desired amenity.  According to Los Gatos, California-based Summit Views, their densified wood G...

Wyndham Redesigns Summerfield Suites Brand; Waiving Initial Franchise Fee in 2003 / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report  Wyndham Redesigns Summerfield Suites Brand;  Waiving Initial Franchise Fee in 2003 LOS ANGELES, (Jan. 27, 2003) – Underscoring its brand philosophy of listening and responding to guest needs, Wyndham International, Inc. (AMEX:WBR) announces a newly redesigned concept for its all-suites brand, Summerfield Suites® by Wyndham.  This new prototype, which features the addition of a studio design to complement the brand’s traditional one- and two-bedroom suites, is the result of focus groups that Wyndham conducted with business travelers to identify their changing needs while on the road.  T...

Stormont Hospitality LLC, Barcelo Crestline Corp. and Starwood Complete Debt and Equity Financing for 450 room Westin Hotel in Irving, Texas / January

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Stormont Hospitality LLC, Barcelo Crestline Corp. and Starwood Complete Debt and Equity Financing for 450 room Westin Hotel in Irving, Texas By Suzanne Marta, The Dallas Morning News Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News  Jan. 29--The private developer contracted to build a headquarters hotel for Irving's proposed convention center has secured financing after 17 months of negotiations.  Stormont Hospitality LLC said Tuesday that it has negotiated a deal for $17.2 million in equity financing through Barcelo Crestline Corp., which would also operate the hotel.  Stormont has...

After The Storm – US Hotels Recovering From Toughest Year in Recent Memory / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report After The Storm - US Hotels Recovering From Toughest Year in Recent Memory Ernst & Young’s 2003 National Lodging Forecast Analyzes Top 24 US Markets and Predicts the Coming Changes  New York, NY (January 28, 2003) – Last year, on February 4, Ernst & Young’s Hospitality Services Group announced its 2002 National Lodging Forecast and called the year the “Perfect Storm” for the hotel industry. The combination of the World Trade Center attack, war on terrorism, drop in the stock market and reductions in corporate travel had joined forces to wreak havoc on the nations battered lodging pri...

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report   StayOnline Introduces Hospitality Industry’s First Online Quote Application - Curious consultants, hoteliers and owners can now see the fiscal advantages of Wireless Internet access systems easily through online application Atlanta GA [January 6] In a move designed to promote the financial advantages of wireless Internet connectivity, hospitality industry leader StayOnline rolled out a new online quote application today at their web site, www.stayonline.net/quote. “We have found that a lot of owners are curious about the cost/benefit relationship of a wireless system,” said StayOnli...

StayOnline Announces 100 % Wireless High Speed Internet Installation at 100th Hotel / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report   StayOnline Announces 100 % Wireless High Speed Internet Installation at 100th Hotel - Fast-Moving Company Combines Technology with Tradition at the historic La Fonda on the Plaza Atlanta, Jan. 8, 2003 - StayOnline, the nation’s leading installer of wireless High Speed Internet Access to the hospitality industry, announces that it will install the service in its 100th hotel – the famed La Fonda on the Plaza in Santa Fe -- in January.  This milestone gives StayOnline the largest footprint of 100% wireless hospitality properties in North America. “We are thrilled to reach our 100th...

Stars and Diamonds; Some Similarities and Some Differences / Harry Nobles / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report Stars and Diamonds; Some Similarities and Some Differences E-mail:  info@optimumrating.com Harry Nobles & Cheryl Thompson Griggs,  January 2003 How are hotel and restaurant ratings determined?   Who gives them?  Who takes them away?  How are they similar?  How are they different?  MOBIL awards stars; AAA awards diamonds.  Both bestow ratings on a scale of 1 to 5; 5 being the highest, denoting the absolute ultimate in luxury, service, atmosphere, and price.  There are many similarities in the way these organizations determine ratings, and some significant differences.   Bot...

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Will Attempt to Salvage Shilo Inn's Reorganization Plan; Criimi Mae Services Unexpectedly Pulls Support / January 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Will Attempt to Salvage Shilo Inn's Reorganization Plan;  Criimi Mae Services Unexpectedly Pulls Support  By Jeff Manning, The Oregonian, Portland, Ore. Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News  Jan. 17--A U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge will attempt Wednesday to salvage a reorganization plan that would have allowed 27 Shilo Inn hotels to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy.  Shilo's lender, Rockville, Md.-based Criimi Mae Services, unexpectedly pulled out its support of the plan in mid-December. The Shilo Inns owe Criimi Mae, a commercial mortgage company...

Select Registry of Distinguished Inns of North America, Representing the Upper End of Bed-and-breakfast Industry, Strategize Effective Use of the Inte

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Select Registry of Distinguished Inns of North America, Representing the Upper End of Bed-and-breakfast Industry, Strategize Effective Use of the Internet By Rebecca Ferrar, The Knoxville News-Sentinel, Tenn. Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News  Jan. 8, 2003 - KINGSTON, Tenn.--Paul Cowell says a recent visit by a couple at his Whitestone Country Inn is typical of today's guests at such getaways.  The wife had just learned she had cancer and told her husband she needed a couple of days of rest at the Whitestone before having surgery.  Cowell says many of the travelers fre...

Security Detail; High-Profile Meetings Have Police on Special Alert / Sandi Cain / January 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online Special Report Security Detail; High-Profile Meetings Have Police on Special Alert  By Sandi Cain  Staff Reporter Orange County Business Journal January 2003 That was recently the case when the San Francisco Giants came south to battle the Anaheim Angels in the World Series, which had an economic impact of $35 million to $40 million related to Anaheim’s four World Series games.  The Hilton Anaheim, headquarters for the Giants, worked with Major League Baseball and the 400-member Anaheim Police Department to provide on-site police presence during the World Series, according to Dan Marweg, director of secu...

Celebrity Chef Stephan Pyles Named as Consulting Concept Chef for Gaylord Opryland Texas / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report Celebrity Chef Stephan Pyles Named as Consulting Concept Chef for Gaylord Opryland Texas GRAPEVINE, Texas - Jan. 9, 2003 -- Gaylord Opryland Texas Resort & Convention Center (NYSE:GET) announced today that Texas' most celebrated chef, Stephan Pyles, will design a restaurant concept for the world-class hotel. Pyles' efforts will focus on creating International Latin dishes for one of the resort's signature restaurants. The Gaylord Hotels Resort, which upon completion will have 1,511 rooms and 400,000 square feet of meeting, convention, and pre-function space, is on schedule to open in April 2004...

Small Luxury Hotels of the World, a Consortium of Independently Owned Hotels, Increases its Membership by 37 Properties to 293 / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report Small Luxury Hotels of the World, a Consortium of Independently Owned Hotels, Increases its Membership by 37 Properties to 293 DALLAS, TX, January 14, 2003 - Small Luxury Hotels of the World, a consortium of the world's top, independently owned hotels, has increased its membership by 37 new properties to 293 – the largest annual increase in over a decade and the highest-ever membership total.  Moreover, SLH has expanded its international presence by adding its first properties in Hungary, Morocco and Myanmar (formerly Burma).  Lee Ann Gamble, regional manager of the Americas fo...

Ritz-Carlton Hotel & Towers Lifts Downtrodden Area of Boston / January 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Ritz-Carlton Hotel & Towers Lifts Downtrodden Area of Boston By Marcella Bombardieri, The Boston Globe Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News  Jan. 26--Many Bostonians were amazed when Millennium Partners and the Ritz-Carlton decided to spend half a billion dollars building an enormous, two-tower, 1.8 million-square-foot complex with more than 300 condos, a hotel, health club, and movie theater on the "wrong" side of the Boston Common, a long-suffering neighborhood with little residential space and more than its fair share of crime and seediness.  The juxtaposition is as bre...

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report Distinctive Management Culture Contributes to Richfield’s Triumph and Team’s Longevity Success starts at the top and trickles down to owners and general managers; Richfield GM’s James Beard and John Wild named “Hoteliers of the Year” Denver, Colo. — January 20, 2003 — Richfield, a SWAN solution that has been providing practical, profitable hotel management services for more than 30 years, has achieved significant success and growth in 2002 amidst a down economy, and more contracts are in the pipeline for 2003. The secret to Richfield’s success stems from its management cul...

Revenue Recovery – Building The 'A' Team in Sales / Carol Verret Consulting and Training / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Carol Verret Consulting  and Training Consulting Training Seminars . Revenue Recovery Building The ‘A’ Team in Sales Carol Verret / January 2003 Many General Managers and Directors of Sales tell me that they establish sales goals for their sales teams that are not being met. They indicate that they cannot seem to get their sales people to develop new business and close it, despite the resources that management is making available to them. The sales people are telling me that they are not sure how to accomplish the things that they are being asked to do.  There is no doubt that it is tough out there but th...

RevPAR Decline Only Tells Part Of The Story; Drop In Hotel Profits Is the Real Concern / PKF Consulting / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report RevPAR Decline Only Tells Part Of The Story; Drop In Hotel Profits Is the Real Concern By Alexander Feneck, Hospitality Research Group of PKF Consulting January 2003 Hotel owners and operators across the U.S. are experiencing sharp declines in RevPAR (revenue per available room), but the real concern in 2002 should be the double-digit declines in profitability.  As the RevPAR declines of 2001 continued into 2002, The Hospitality Research Group of PKF Consulting (HRG) decided to assess the extent of the declines in profitability and profile some of the changes managers have ma...

2002 Hotel Data Suggests Regional UK Hotel Industry in Recovery, But Average Room Rate Continues to Fall in London / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report 2002 Hotel Data Suggests Regional UK Hotel Industry in Recovery, But Average Room Rate Continues to Fall in London January 16, 2003 - Regional hotel performance held up well in 2002 despite the challenging economy, according to preliminary year-end data on the UK hotel industry from Deloitte & Touche. Hotels located outside London maintained occupancy levels with average occupancy at 70.3%, similar to 2001 levels. Average room rates experienced only a marginal decline, down 0.7% to £62. The results are encouraging when compared with hotel performance during the early 1990’s, whe...

Hotel Regency Denver Owner Art Cormier to Auction the 421 room Hotel to the Highest Bidder on March 20, 2003 / January 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Hotel Regency Denver Owner Art Cormier to Auction the 421 room Hotel to the Highest Bidder on March 20, 2003 By Mark P. Couch, The Denver Post Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News  Jan. 22, 2003 - The owner of a controversial hotel and nightclub in Denver plans to sell the property in an auction in late March.  Art Cormier, who owns the Hotel Regency at 3900 Elati St., said he plans to sell the property to the highest bidder on March 20.  "I think the true value of the property will surface in an auction," Cormier said.  Cormier, who bought the property in May 1999, run...

2002 Hotel Data Suggests the International Hotel Industry in Recovery, While the US Hotel Industry Remains Under Pressure / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report  2002 Hotel Data Suggests the International Hotel Industry in Recovery, While the US Hotel Industry Remains Under Pressure LOS ANGELES – 28 January 2003  - Yesterday at the Americas Lodging Investment Summit (ALIS) Deloitte & Touche and Smith Travel Research shared the platform to reveal year-end performance data for the global hotel industry. US data was presented by Randy Smith, CEO of Smith Travel Research, whilst international data was presented by Marvin Rust, partner for HotelBenchmark at Deloitte & Touche. The data reveals that whilst US hotels experienced a decline in revPAR of 2.5...

Wresting Back Control from the Online Wholesalers – Sell Rate Parity on Transparent Distribution Channels / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report Wresting Back Control from the Online Wholesalers . Sell Rate Parity on Transparent Distribution Channels Parity: when a property offers the same rates for a specific room type on a specific date. By Sharon H. McAuliffe, January 2003 I recently attended the HEDNA conference in Boston, and as I listened to the dialogue between attendees representing both the supply and demand side of the industry, there was one thing that became abundantly clear to me.  Hoteliers feel as though they have lost control over their sell rates and yield management practices due to the influences of web...

Queen Rania Provides a Model of Leadership for the Second Global Summit on Peace Building a Culture of Peace through Tourism / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report Queen Rania Provides a Model of Leadership for the Second Global Summit on Peace "Building a Culture of Peace through Tourism" January 7, 2003 - Under the patronage of Her Majesty Queen Rania Al-Abdullah of The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, the Second Global Summit on Peace through Tourism will be held at the International Conference Center Geneva (CICG) February 5-8, 2003.    The Summit, being organized by the International Institute for Peace through Tourism (IIPT) in partnership with the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), is in support of the U.N. Decade for Peace and No...

Radisson Hotels & Resorts Adds 26 Hotels and Resorts in 2002, Spans 12 Countries / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report Radisson Hotels & Resorts Adds 26 Hotels and Resorts in 2002, Spans 12 Countries Hotels Open in Lebanon, Egypt and UAE with Entry Into Saudi Arabia This Quarter MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. (January 17, 2003) — Radisson Hotels & Resorts, continuing its global expansion, today announced it has added 26 new hotels and resorts in 2002, spanning 12 countries around the world and encompassing nearly 5,000 rooms.  The brand's growth includes the first introduction of Radisson in Lebanon, a re-entry to the United Arab Emirates, expansion in Egypt, France and Poland, plus entry into Saudi A...

Hotel Developer Robert E. Woolley Withdraws Candidacy to Become Chairman of the Dallas Convention and Visitors Bureau / January 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online News for the Hospitality Executive Hotel Developer Robert E. Woolley Withdraws Candidacy to Become Chairman of the Dallas Convention and Visitors Bureau  By DAVE MICHAELS / The Dallas Morning News  Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News  January 23, 2003 - Mayor Laura Miller’s choice to become chairman of the Dallas Convention and Visitors Bureau withdrew his candidacy on Thursday, saying his schedule would not allow him to spend the time necessary to turn around the bureau.  “It became clear that Dallas needs a chair who can devote virtually all of his or her time and energy to turn this ship around,” Ro...

Randall M. King promoted to Regional Director of Operations for The Dow Hotel Company / Jan 2003

January 30, 2003

Hotel Online  Special Report Randall M. King promoted to Regional Director of Operations for The Dow Hotel Company January 08, 2003 – The Dow Hotel Company announces today that Randall M. King has been promoted to Regional Director of Operations for the Midwestern United States. Mr. King will continue to have responsibility for The Embassy Suites O’Hare and will be based from the hotel. He has also assumed responsibility for The Radisson Hotel Cleveland Airport and is active in the company’s extensive acquisition efforts in the Midwestern United States. “We have been very pleased with the success of Randa...