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Industry Happenings
IHG Partners With SDB Developers to Expand Presence in Kolkata with Signing of Holiday Inn Resort Kolkata NH6
IHG | June 5, 2018
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), one of world's leading hotel companies has announced a partnership with SDB Developers to bring a second Holiday Inn hotel to Kolkata. As part of the agreement, the 110-room Holiday Inn Resort Kolkata NH6 will have 90 rooms operational by the end of 2018, with 20 additional rooms expected to be operational by 2020. The new resort will expand the growing presence of the Holiday Inn brand family in the country. Sprawling across 12 acres of land in Uluberia, a city that comes under the Kolkata Metropolitan Area, Holiday Inn Resort Kolkata NH6 is strategically located to offer excellent connectivity to c...
Historic Greystone Inn on Lake Toxaway Re-Opens With Liddell
Liddell | June 5, 2018
Liddell's luxury linens and terry bath products are serving as sensory touchpoints that pamper guests and define the hospitality standards of this historic landmark in North Carolina [Johnston, S.C. — June 5, 2018] — When the Greystone Inn re-opened its doors this month in Lake Toxaway, N.C., following an extensive renovation, Liddell was there to pamper guests with lavish bedding and sumptuous terry products. Originally built in 1915 as a private residence and reopening as an Inn in 1985, the Greystone has been recognized as one of the top hotels in the world. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the AAA ...
New Generation of Hyatt Place Hotels Elevates Guest Experience and Increases Value for Owners
Hyatt Place | June 5, 2018
CHICAGO--Hyatt Place, Hyatt's upscale select service brand designed for business travelers, today unveiled a new generation of hotels focused on three key areas: thoughtful design, driving value for World of Hyatt members and enhanced well-being experiences. Today's announcement signals a move that responds to guests' and owners' evolving needs, while building on the success of the Hyatt Place brand. "The new generation of Hyatt Place hotels is intended to further strengthen the overall Hyatt Place portfolio and expand our opportunities to work with world-class developers and operators, while also providing flexibility and support to ou...
MCR Selected to Manage 259-Room Miami International Airport Hotel Located at Concourse E
MCR | June 5, 2018
NEW YORK / JUNE 5, 2018 MCR, the seventh-largest hotel owner-operator in the United States, is now managing the 259-room Miami International Airport Hotel. Located pre-security at the departures level of Concourse E, it is the only hotel at Miami International Airport, which serves more than 44 million passengers annually. In partnership with the Miami-Dade Aviation Department, MCR will deliver a first-class experience for guests on layovers and early birds eager to be one security check away from their gates. The company also aims to welcome travelers from around the world to MIA — the nation's third-busiest airport for internati...
Radisson Hotel Group Plans Q3 2018 Launch of Radisson Ningbo Beilunin Port City of Ningbo, Zhejiang Province
Radisson Hotel Group | June 5, 2018
Radisson Hotel Group™ has expanded its collection of upscale Radisson hotels in China, with the launch of Radisson Ningbo Beilun in the thriving port city of Ningbo, Zhejiang province. Radisson Ningbo Beilun is a new-build hotel in the city's Beilun district, a free trade zone, close to one of China's largest international ports. Scheduled to open in Q3, 2018, the hotel will be part of a mixed development, INSHOW City, a commercial complex that will showcase China's first nautical theme and largest city light show. The stylish 21-storey hotel is strategically located within proximity to commercial offices, dining outlets, retail m...
INNSIDE by Meliá New York Appoints Randy Taormina as Managing Director
June 5, 2018
New York, NY (June 5, 2018) – Meliá Hotels International, Spain's leading hotel company, is excited to announce the appointment of Randy Taormina as the new Managing Director of its INNSIDE by Meliá New York. Taormina, a celebrated hospitality professional with over 15 years of experience, most recently served as Area Managing Director for Dream Hotel Group, where he oversaw both Dream Downtown and Dream Midtown. He started his career in 2004, as a General Manager Lodgian Hotels Corporation. Throughout this six-year period, he managed five properties in several cities including Dallas, Pittsburgh, Phoenix, Denver and...
5 Reasons Your Hotel’s Conversion Rate Is Low—and How to Fix It
Joanna DeChellis | June 5, 2018
By Joanna DeChellis Getting customers to your hotel's website is one thing. Converting their clicks into bookings is quite another. According to Sam Weston, marketing manager for 80 DAYS, conversion rates for hotel websites average between 1.7% and 2%. (If you're looking at anything higher than that, you're doing great.) But even in the best-case scenarios, where a hotel might be seeing a 5% conversion rate, 95% of visitors are still abandoning. The good news is, the majority of visitors who abandon a booking are not lost for good. It's more likely these visitors want to shop around. (According to a recent statistic by SaleCycle.com ...
Germany Leads Europe’s Hotel Construction Pipeline; London Ranks as Top City
Lodging Econometrics (LE) | June 5, 2018
June 5, 2018 – PORTSMOUTH, NH – According to analysts at Lodging Econometrics (LE), the top countries in the Europe Construction Pipeline by project count are: Germany with 246 Projects/47,927 Rooms, United Kingdom with 246 Projects/36,585 Rooms, and France with 121 Projects/13,618 Rooms. Next, all with 80 projects, is Russia with 80 Projects/15,520 Rooms, Poland with 80 Projects/12,468 Rooms, and Portugal with 80 Projects/8,310 Rooms. These three countries are followed closely by Spain with 79 Projects/11,457 Rooms and Turkey with 70 Projects/11,278 Rooms. Cities in Europe with the largest pipelines by room count are...
Cambria New Orleans Downtown Warehouse District Taps Gabe Roth as New Director of Food & Beverage
Cambria Hotels | June 5, 2018
New Orleans, Louisiana (June 5, 2018) - Cambria New Orleans is pleased to announce that Gabe M. Roth will serve as the property's new director of food and beverage. Roth is a native New Orleanian and a graduate of Jesuit High School. He obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in management from Louisiana State University. Gabe Roth has held a number of managerial positions with the Hilton brand over the last several years. He served as food and beverage manager and later the assistant food and beverage director at the Hilton Garden Inn New Orleans Convention Center. Immediately prior to joining Cambria New Orleans, Roth was the cateri...
Lansdowne Resort and Spa Appoints Joel Paige as Managing Director
Lansdowne Resort and Spa, A Destination Hotel | June 5, 2018
We're proud to welcome Joel Paige to Lansdowne Resort and Spa as our Managing Director. Joel joins the resort with over 20-years' experience as Managing Director of Resorts, with extensive experience at well-known golf resorts, most recently PGA National Resort and Spa and Doral Golf Resort and Spa in Florida. Joel takes pride in his ability to lead a creative, high energy and efficient team that results in positive guest, member and team member experiences. He is especially experienced with large group business, resort programming, renovation projects and golf related business – making him the perfect fit for Lansdowne Resort and...
Bay Gardens Resorts Acquires Palm Haven Hotel to Be Rebranded as Bay Gardens Marina Haven
Bay Gardens Resorts | June 5, 2018
ST. LUCIA (June 5, 2018) - Bay Gardens Resorts has expanded its portfolio to four hotels on the Eastern Caribbean island of St. Lucia. Sanovnik Destang, Executive Director of Bay Gardens Resorts, announcing the acquisition of the 35-room Palm Haven Hotel, said it would be renamed Bay Gardens Marina Haven. "The hotel is in an incredible location," Destang reported. "It's now our closest hotel to the Rodney Bay Marina, which is an exceptional facility for yachties as well as those looking to take advantage of numerous activities in the marina, from restaurants and bars to shopping." The newest addition to the Bay G...
Zaplox Partners With Maestro PMS to Introduce Innovative Mobile Guest Technology to Over 800 Leading Independent Hotels
Northwind Maestro PMS | June 5, 2018
Zaplox AB (publ) ("Zaplox"), a leading global mobile key and hospitality market innovator, today announced a new partnership with Northwind to offer its mobile guest experience platform as an integrated solution to the over 800 hotels using Northwind's Maestro Property Management System (PMS). The strategic alliance is designed to deliver a competitive advantage and new business opportunities in North America. The collaboration between the two highly innovative hotel technology companies will benefit many of North America's leading hotels, resort and multi-properties to enhance their mobile guest journey and deliver a friction...
Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas, Together with Gremi International S.a.r.l., to Develop First South American Project
Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas | June 5, 2018
BANGKOK – June 5, 2018 - Six Senses Hotels Resorts Spas has recently unveiled plans for their latest project and first South America property, Six Senses Formosa Bay in Brazil, which will open in 2021. Located at Baia Formosa, which translates to Beautiful Bay, the resort is set in the most eastern territory of Brazil and the country's closest point to Europe. The extraordinary site, which is a part of the Eco Estrela Project, features almost 4.5 miles of Atlantic Ocean beachfront and covers an area of 6,350 acres. It was home to a former coconut plantation which shared the land with prolific mangroves through which guests can nav...
Why Can’t We All Just Get Along? The Future of Hotel Technology Integrations & APIs
June 5, 2018
By Jos Schaap CEO and Founder - StayNTouch "A picture is worth a thousand words. An interface is worth a thousand pictures." Ben Shneiderman, Professor Computer Science at the University of Maryland The capability to have an open platform/solution or software product that is truly agnostic when it comes to integrating with third-party systems in today's hotel technology space is paramount to the success of a well-run hotel. After all, ensuring that each guest enjoys the highest level of guest service available is the primary responsibility of every hotel. Behind the scenes, hotel systems are busily chugging away to support the operation...
HAPI Taps Laurent Idrac as Latest Advisory Board Member
HAPI and Data Travel | June 5, 2018
New cloud-based data streaming, integration and enrichment platform adds seasoned hospitality technology industry executive to its leadership team Miami – June 5, 2018 – HAPI, a transformative new data streaming, integration and enrichment platform designed to solve the hotel industry's rapidly expanding data management challenges, has appointed Laurent Idrac, a 30-year veteran of the global hotel technology industry to its Board of Advisors. In preparation for rapid adoption and growth, this strategic appointment reflects HAPI's commitment to true innovation, leadership and positive change for the hotel market. "I have a st...
Sheraton Hong Kong Hotel & Towers Strives to Maximize the Meeting Experience
Sheraton Hong Kong Hotel & Towers | June 4, 2018
Perfectly positioned at the top of Kowloon's legendary Golden mile with Victoria Harbour frontage, Sheraton Hong Kong Hotel & Towers introduces the Sheraton Meeting Perfected Rewards Programme^ available exclusively for meeting organizers. With a total of 1,398 square meters (15,043 square feet) for the Ballroom and 14 sophisticated function rooms, the Hotel offers versatility to suit all types of meetings and events. Its strategic location ensures guests have an instant access to the city's premier business, shopping and entertainment destinations whilst the ferry terminal and subway (MTR) are only steps away. This rewards programm...
Owned by R.D. Olson Development, New 204-Suite Residence Inn by Marriott Redwood City San Carlos Opens in California
Residence Inn by Marriott | June 4, 2018
San Carlos, CA – June 8, 2018 – The 204-suite Residence Inn by Marriott in San Carlos, California is set to open today. Located at 800 East San Carlos Avenue, the all-suite Residence Inn Redwood City San Carlos is owned by R.D. Olson Development of Newport Beach, CA and managed by Marriott International, Inc. General Manager Nick Dell'Ergo leads the management team at the property, and will help to meet the extended-stay needs of the area's business travelers. Located in the Silicon Valley Corridor, 12 miles from San Francisco International Airport, the Residence Inn Redwood City San Carlos offers its guests convenient a...
Clairvoyix Client Databases GDPR Ready Before Deadline
Clairvoyix | June 4, 2018
Clairvoyix Knowledge Factory identifies and remediates EU guest data LAS VEGAS – Clairvoyix, the leader in data-driven marketing automation for the hospitality industry, announced today it has successfully processed more than 100 million past guest records to ensure clients' General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)-affected guests meet the requirements as stipulated in the regulation. The deadline to complete this was May 25. "The practice of 'blasting' an email campaign is effectively over," said Mike Schmitt, CEO at Clairvoyix. "Marketing databases that were once treated as simply a repository for email addresses will become a...
Marriott International Unveils Transformation Vision for Sheraton Hotels and Resorts
Marriott International, Inc. | June 4, 2018
Marriott International (NASDAQ: MAR) today announced its transformation vision for Sheraton Hotels and Resorts, the third largest brand in its portfolio, and the largest outside of North America in terms of room count. The company, which introduced its new Sheraton guestroom late last year, is showcasing its vision for Sheraton's public spaces at the NYU International Hospitality Industry Investment Conference in New York, bringing to life for owners and investors the company's brand strategy as well as its signature focus on guest experience, hotel operations and design philosophy. "From the moment we closed the Starwood merger in late...
Country Inn & Suites by Radisson Opens Refreshed Hotel Near the Indianapolis Motor Speedway
June 4, 2018
Minneapolis (June 4, 2018) - Country Inn & Suites® by Radisson, a leading upper midscale hotel brand, today announced the opening of Country Inn & Suites by Radisson, Indianapolis East, IN. Located at 7610 Old Trails Road, the hotel adds ease for visitors in town for some fast-paced fun at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It is also near Lucas Oil Stadium, home of the Indianapolis Colts, and the Indiana Convention Center. The hotel recently completed an extensive $1.3 million renovation, which includes upgrades to the guest rooms, business center, fitness center, veranda and lobby. "We are thrilled to see the continued growth of...
Hospitality Financial Leadership: How the Coach Helped Me
David Lund | June 4, 2018
By David Lund Coaching people around the financials in hotels is what I do. I accomplish this by one-on-one coaching usually on the phone, through Skype, or in workshops where as a group we explore and debunk the mystery around the numbers. Many people are fond of saying the numbers are the hard part of hospitality. That is not true. What is true is we do not exercise these muscles. We do not even know we have a financial muscle in many cases. This story is about one of those people and how I was able to help them. Names and places are changed to keep anonymity. Chris sent me an email requesting some of my free documents that I offer on...
Cadillac Fairview Acquires 100% Ownership of The Ritz-Carlton, Toronto
Cadillac Fairview | June 4, 2018
TORONTO, June 4, 2018 - Cadillac Fairview is pleased to announce it has acquired the interest of Simcoe Wellington Hotel Limited Partnership, making it the 100% owner of The Ritz-Carlton, Toronto. As part of this transaction, Marriott International will continue to operate the hotel under The Ritz-Carlton brand. "As one of the original developers of The Ritz-Carlton, Toronto, we are proud to increase our ownership interest in one of Toronto's premier luxury hotels," said John Sullivan, President and CEO, Cadillac Fairview. "Located at the intersection of the financial, entertainment and waterfront districts, we view T...
Rosewood Hotels & Resorts Selected by McNair Interests to Manage New, Ultra-Luxury Hotel in Houston’s Uptown District
Rosewood Hotels & Resorts | June 4, 2018
HONG KONG, June 4, 2018 -- Rosewood Hotels & Resorts® has been selected by McNair Interests to manage a new, ultra-luxury hotel in Houston. Set to open in 2023, the hotel will be Rosewood's second in Texas and their ninth in the United States. Ideally located in the city's exclusive Uptown District, the hotel will be near several of Houston's most popular sites including The Galleria, Texas' largest luxury shopping destination, and the Texas Medical Center, the largest medical center in the world. The Rosewood hotel will consist of 150 rooms and will be located in an exclusive mixed-use and high-rise development ...
Benbria and Knowcross Announce Technology Partnership
Benbria | June 4, 2018
Benbria's Loop® omni-channel guest engagement platform now integrates seamlessly with KNOW Service, a guest request and workflow management solution. Ottawa, Canada and Washington D.C., USA –June 4, 2018 – Benbria®, the leading provider of omni-channel guest experience measurement and engagement solutions, announced today a strategic integration partnership with Knowcross®, the global leader in providing software solutions for hospitality operations. This integration will allow a hotel's guests to send messages and requests, which hotel staff can receive and respond to via the Loop platform, from a wide range of ...
