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Industry Happenings
Inland American Real Estate Trust Acquires the 285-room Loews New Orleans Hotel for $74.5 Million
Inland American Lodging Advisor, Inc. | October 15, 2013
OAK BROOK, Ill. - October 15, 2013 - Inland American Lodging Group, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Inland American Real Estate Trust, Inc., today announced that it has acquired the 21-story, 285-room Loews New Orleans for a purchase price of $74.5 million, or approximately $261,000 per key. Loews Hotels & Resorts will continue to manage the hotel. The Loews New Orleans represents the ninth hotel acquired by Inland American this year and the first Loews-managed hotel in its portfolio. "We are very pleased to be adding this luxury hotel to our portfolio," said Marcel Verbaas, president and CEO of Inland American Lodging Advisor, I...
Top Five Trends in Hospitality for 2014 Forecast by Kendall College School of Hospitality Management
The Kendall College School of Hospitality Management | October 15, 2013
CHICAGO, Oct. 15, 2013 -- Kendall College School of Hospitality Management, ranked the No. 1 program in Chicago for preparing students for hospitality careers, has released its first-ever trends outlook for the hospitality industry in 2014. 1. Global Going Strong: International Knowledge in Demand According to the World Travel & Tourism Council, the Travel and Tourism industry is currently among the largest and fastest-growing industries worldwide, forecasted to support 328 million jobs, or 10 percent of the workforce, by 2022.1 A top 10 industry in the U.S., Travel and Tourism provides one out of eight jobs, with that number incre...
Innovating the Human Element in Business
Aspire Marketing | October 15, 2013
We are honored to share in the news that Aspire is a finalist for the 2013 International Stevie® Awards for Women in Business for the 9th year in a row in the category of Innovation! The Stevie Awards for Women in Business honor women executives, entrepreneurs, employees and the companies they run-worldwide. The Stevie Awards have been hailed as the world's premier business awards. The winners will be announced during a gala event in New York on Friday, November 8. Our Mission and Vision Aspire is recognized for "Innovation of the Human Element," for our belief and commitment to the idea that every company's greatest asset is their peo...
White Lodging & Hyatt Affiliate Form JV to Develop Dual-Branded Hyatt Place/Hyatt House in Denver
Hyatt Place | October 15, 2013
CHICAGO (October 15, 2013) – White Lodging Services and Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) announced the formation of a joint venture to develop Denver's first dual-branded Hyatt Place/Hyatt House. A Hyatt affiliate and White Lodging will each own 50 percent of the joint venture and White Lodging will operate the hotels under franchise agreements with a Hyatt affiliate. "We are thrilled to expand upon our strategic relationship with Hyatt and looking forward to breaking ground in November," said Deno Yiankes, president and CEO of White Lodging's Investments and Developments division. "This project is yet another example of our continu...
Arthur J. Packard Memorial Scholarship Awarded To Three Students by AH&LEF
AH&LEF | October 15, 2013
Washington, October 15, 2013 - The American Hotel & Lodging Educational Foundation (AH&LEF), the not-for-profit affiliate of the American Hotel & Lodging Association, awarded three scholarships via its Arthur J. Packard Memorial Scholarship Program, the Foundation's most prominent and oldest scholarship award. Winning first-place and a $5,000 scholarship is Michael Nalezny, a senior at Purdue University. Georgia Ladd, a senior at Boston University, received $3,000 as second-place winner, and Katalina Durbin, a junior at Florida International University, was the third-place winner with a $2,000 scholarship. The Arthur J. Pack...
Two Texas Holiday Inn Express Properties Adopt ElevenGC
Eleven | October 15, 2013
Following a Holiday Inn Express brand refresh, 2 Amarillo properties up their 'cool' factor with new iMac guest computers from Eleven 10/15/13 Portland, Ore. - To add to their hip and modern amenities, Holiday Inn Express Amarillo and Holiday Inn Express Amarillo West recently adopted ElevenGC in their business centers. The Eleven iMac solution was deployed at the airport location earlier this year and immediately received rave reviews from guests and staff. The property's owner, Alkesh Patel, opened a second Holiday Inn Express near downtown Amarillo and again turned to ElevenGC to outfit his business center. Both properties offer 24/7...
Regatta Travel Solutions Introduces its New Groups, Convention & Sport Housing Solution
Regatta Travel Solutions Inc. | October 15, 2013
Charlottesville, Virginia (October 15, 2013) - Regatta Travel Solutions announced today that it has officially released a new booking engine aimed at the groups, convention and sports housing segments. "There is a hole in the market that needs to be filled." said Ashwin Kamlani. "As we have gotten deeply involved in the Destination Marketing industry, it has become abundantly clear that DMOs are in need of a better sports and group housing solution than what is currently available on the market. We believe that with our creative and fresh approach, we have the technology and experience to reinvent the way these bookings are handled. Our...
Strong 2014 Business Travel at Risk From Shutdown and Threat of Default
October 15, 2013
Final GBTA BTI™ Outlook of the Year Shows Rising Momentum, But GBTA Sees Serious Concerns from Business Travel Professionals ALEXANDRIA, Va. - Oct. 15, 2013 -- Business travel spending is expected to see a robust year in 2014 fueled by steady corporate profits, increases in business investment and an improving U.S. economy. However, the ongoing government shutdown and potential default could derail progress and is already impacting business travel sentiment. The final GBTA BTI™ Outlook – United States of the year, sponsored by Visa, Inc., forecasts that total U.S. business travel spending should grow by 7.2% in 2014, reaching $288...
TSA Solutions Expands Operations into the Americas, Appoints 2 Senior Executives to Management Team
TSA Solutions | October 15, 2013
Leading provider of revenue enhancing solutions for the global hospitality market taps hotel industry veterans to head up new Americas operation SINGAPORE AND MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. - OCTOBER 15, 2013 - TSA Solutions, a leading global provider of measurable and sustainable revenue performance enhancing solutions for the hospitality industry, today announces its expansion into the Americas market with the appointment of two senior executives to its management team. Hospitality industry veterans Klaus Kohlmayr and Steve Green have been named Chief Commercial Officer and Director of Business Development, Americas, respectively, and will head u...
Erich D. Hosbach Named as Director of Sales & Marketing for The Graham Georgetown in Washington, DC
The Graham Georgetown | October 15, 2013
WASHINGTON, DC - Octover 15, 2013 - The Graham Georgetown, DC's newest boutique hotel centrally located in historic Georgetown, today announced the appointment of Erich Hosbach as Director of Sales & Marketing. Hosbach will apply his over 25 years of hospitality management experience to all aspects of the sales and marketing effort in the intimate luxury hotel. Hosbach is a seasoned international public relations, marketing, sales and event management executive. He has perfected his craft working with diverse luxury brands such as Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group and Starwood Hotels & Resorts World Wide as well as DC's legendary Ha...
PolyU Study Finds Travel Magazines Critical to Image Projection for DMOs
PolyU's School of Hotel and Tourism Management | October 15, 2013
15 October 2013 - Destination marketing organisations should pay careful attention to the ways in which Chinese travel magazines portray destination attributes and images according to Professor Cathy Hsu of the School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and a co-author. In a recently published research article they show that these magazines are more likely to project images associated with leisure and culture than physical features, atmosphere or political environment. Having analysed magazine content in relation to six outbound destinations, the researchers note that reporting on Japan, Taiwan...
Groupize Launches Groups and Meetings Booking Engine at IMEX America
Groupize | October 15, 2013
Company Offers Powerful Tool for Hotels to Transact with Organizers of Groups and Meetings Las Vegas, NV, October 15, 2013 - Groupize today unveiled their Groups and Meetings Booking Engine at IMEX America. Groupize Live is a streamlined shopping and lead management system designed for hotel chains and independent properties to capture and convert their online groups and meetings requests. The cloud based solution allows for end to end management of a group from online shopping to initial reservation, as well as communicating with the planner and contracting to check-in, therefore automating all of the tasks involved in planning and boo...
TripAdvisor Names Hot New Hotels Across The Globe; Lists 33 Recently Opened Hotels in 18 Countries
TripAdvisor | October 15, 2013
NEWTON, Mass., Oct.15, 2013 -- TripAdvisor ® , the world's largest travel site*, today announced its inaugural list of Hot New Hotels. Recognizing 33 hotels in 18 countries worldwide that opened within the last year(1), these properties have provided guests with memorable experiences and have earned a minimum of four out of five bubble rating on TripAdvisor. "TripAdvisor has identified the new hotels that have made lasting impressions on our community since opening their doors," said Barbara Messing, chief marketing officer at TripAdvisor. "Whether traveling internationally or close to home, we encourage travelers to check out, or 'che...
The 96-suite SpringHill Suites Jackson North/Ridgeland to Open Later this Month in Mississippi
SpringHill Suites by Marriott | October 15, 2013
Owned by Township Hospitality Partners and Managed by Kana Hotel Group Ridgeland, Mississippi - October 15, 2013 - The 96-suite SpringHill Suites by Marriott in Ridgeland, Mississippi is scheduled to open later this month. Located at 121 Southtowne Avenue, the SpringHill Suites Jackson North/Ridgeland will operate as a Marriott franchise, owned by Township Hospitality Partners, LLC and managed by Kana Hotel Group of Knoxville, Tennessee. Located in The Township at Colony Park and 17 miles from Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International Airport, the hotel offers guests convenient access to Renaissance at Colony Park, Jackson Convention Com...
The SpeedRFP Network Launches at IMEX America 2013
Elite Meetings International | October 14, 2013
SpeedRFP's 72,000 Buyer Members Can Now Access Over 10,000 Hotels that Focus on Group Business - Directly, Easily and in One Place Las Vegas, October 14, 2013-SpeedRFP, the leading cloud-based, request-for-proposal (RFP) system, launched the SpeedRFP Network, a new portal for hotels around the world focused on group business. The SpeedRFP electronic proposal system currently serves 72,000 buyers, who can repurpose proposals on any SpeedRFP-enabled site. The SpeedRFP Network was developed in response to a chorus of requests from these buyers, who asked for the convenience of researching and submitting RFPs on a single site. Kelly Foy, CE...
Carlson Rezidor to Develop the 138-room Radisson Blu Hotel, Algiers Hydra to Open Q1 2015 in Algiers
Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group | October 14, 2013
October 14, 2013 - Carlson Rezidor, one of the largest and most dynamic hotel groups worldwide, announces their very first project in Algeria: The Radisson Blu Hotel, Algiers Hydra featuring 138 guest rooms is scheduled to open in Q1 2015. "We are delighted to arrive in Algeria – a country with considerable growth potential where we aim to further strengthen the presence of our core brands Radisson Blu and Park Inn by Radisson", said Wolfgang M. Neumann, President & CEO of Rezidor. The signing also underlines the importance Africa has for Carlson Rezidor as a key development market: All across the continent the group operates and ...
Jaime Mackillop Promoted to Spa Director of The Spa at Omni Mount Washington Resort in New Hampshire
Omni Mount Washington Resort | October 14, 2013
BRETTON WOODS, NH (October 14, 2013) - Omni Mount Washington Resort in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, has announced the promotion of Jaime MacKillop to Spa Director of The Spa. MacKillop is responsible for all operations of the 25,000-square-foot spa, including marketing, staff management, finances, and creating new signature spa treatments, services and packages inspired by local ingredients and the pristine beauty of the White Mountain National Forest. "We're always pleased to promote management from within, and there is no one more deserving than Jaime to oversee one of our most popular amenities," said Stephen Hilliard, Managing Dire...
Northview Hotel Group & Affiliate of Oaktree Capital Management Acquire the Bethesda Marriott in MD
Northview Hotel Group | October 14, 2013
BETHESDA, Md. - October 14, 2013 - A partnership of Northview Hotel Group and an affiliate of Oaktree Capital Management, L.P. has acquired the Bethesda Marriott Hotel at Pooks Hill Road, Bethesda, MD. The Bethesda Marriott is a full-service 407-key hotel located adjacent to Rockville Pike, approximately nine miles north of Washington D.C. and close to downtown Bethesda, the National Institute of Health, and Walter Reed Medical Center. The Hotel features a 180-seat three-meal restaurant, 19,000 square feet of meeting space, and indoor and outdoor pools. Marriott Hotels & Resorts manages the Hotel under a long-term management contrac...
Nobody Asked Me, But… No. 112; Hotel History: The Drake Hotel in New York
Stanley Turkel, CMHS, ISHC | October 14, 2013
Marriott CEO Tells U.S. Congress: Get Back to Work; New York Investigating Airbnb and HomeAway; Quote of the Month; My New Book By Stanley Turkel, CMHS, ISHC 1. Hotel History: The Drake Hotel in New York On a front page story in the Metropolitan section (October 6, 2013), the New York Times reported "Harry Macklowe Gambles Again: A developer known for wild swings of fortune builds a Park Avenue apartment tower a quarter-mile high." On the site of the old Drake Hotel (demolished in 2007), Macklowe is building a luxurious apartment building which, upon completion, will be, at 1,398 feet the tallest residential tower in the Western Hemisp...
Industry Preview: Customer Engagement Technology World (CETW) 2013
Customer Engagement Technology World (CETW) | October 14, 2013
By Lawrence Dvorchik,General Manager & Chief Content Officer, Customer Engagement Technology World What can you expect at Customer Engagement Technology World (CETW) this year? You'll be interested in hearing from South by Southwest (SXSW) Events' Scott Wilcox, a member of the Board of Directors for SXSW and their Director of Technology, about how they create communities through myriad technologies, including mobile apps, digital signage, social media, kiosks, Wi-Fi, streaming, RFID, QR codes, and a host of custom software. A big theme of the event is Customer Engagement Must Be 360 Degrees, 365 Days a Year, an issue that Dunkin' D...
Laurus Corporation Acquires the 146-room Hilton Garden Inn Philadelphia/Ft. Washington in PA
Laurus Corporation | October 14, 2013
PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 14, 2013 -- Laurus Corporation, a U.S.-based private real estate investment and development firm, has completed the acquisition of the Hilton Garden Inn located in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania. Situated 20 miles north of downtown Philadelphia, the six-story hotel features 146 guestrooms, an indoor swimming pool, business center, guest laundry facility, the brand's signature restaurant and bar and three meeting facilities totaling 3,350 square feet. The Hilton Garden Inn is positioned adjacent to the Fort Washington Office Park which consists of nearly six million square feet of Class-A office space, housing more than...
Travel Agent Use of GDS Growing More Than Any Other Booking Channel
TravelClick | October 14, 2013
Study Finds that More Travel Agents are Using GDS and Booking Promotional Rates And Will Actively Book Away from Hotels Not in Parity NEW YORK – October 14, 2013 – A recent study of more than 650 agents from 34 countries found that travel agents are using Global Distribution Systems (GDS) more than ever before. The 2013 Bi-Annual Global travel agent GDS Study, conducted by market research firm Phoenix Marketing International in partnership with TravelClick, surveyed travel agents worldwide that use Amadeus, Galileo, Sabre and Worldspan. The GDS is one of only two channels that travel agents are using more than in the past, with the ...
Charmaine Dixson-Lane Named Director of Catering for GA’s Holiday Inn & Suites Atlanta Airport-North
Holiday Inn & Suites Atlanta Airport-North | October 14, 2013
ATLANTA, GA. - October 14, 2013 - Charmaine Dixson-Lane has been named Director Of Catering at the Holiday Inn & Suites Atlanta Airport-North, a 330-room full service hotel located near Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta, GA. Charmaine, having worked for Full Service and Resort hotels across the United States, Mexico and the Caribbean, will lead the hotel's marquee Catering department. "Charmaine is a great addition to our Catering Team," said Robert Holsten, Executive Vice President Of Operations, First Call Hospitality, Inc., which manages the Holiday Inn & Suites. "We have already established and differentiat...
Benchmark Hospitality International Appoints Andrew Finn as Vice President, Group Sales
October 14, 2013
The Woodlands (Houston), Texas, October 14, 2013 - Benchmark Hospitality International®, a leading U.S.-based hospitality management company, has named Andrew (Andy) Finn vice president, group sales. Ted Davis, chief marketing officer, made the announcement. Mr. Finn will be based in Benchmark's Home Office in The Woodlands, Texas, near Houston. "It is a pleasure to welcome Andy to Benchmark Hospitality International," said Mr. Davis. "He is the first to serve in this new position, and comes extremely well qualified to further develop and grow Benchmark's relationships and business volume within the group meetings market." Andy Finn br...
