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Cambria Hotel Sonoma Wine Country Announces Executive Team
Cambria Hotel Sonoma Wine Country | October 22, 2020
Sonoma, California (October 22, 2020) – Cambria Hotel Sonoma Wine Country is pleased to announce Max Childs as General Manager and Stacey Washburn as Director of Sales & Marketing, who together oversee Sonoma County’s first Cambria Hotel by Choice Hotels, managed by Azul Hospitality Group. Childs is responsible for all aspects of the hotel’s operations, while Washburn leads and improves strategies that drive revenue growth. Both are vital in the overall operational success of Cambria Hotel Sonoma which opened this past August 2020. With more than 30 years of deep-rooted hospitality experience, Childs is a self-starter who is adep...
Hotel Equities Opens Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott in Dayton, Ohio
Hotel Equities | October 22, 2020
ATLANTA – October 22, 2020 – Today, Atlanta-based Hotel Equities (“HE”) announced the opening of the Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott Dayton North. The hotel located at 7072 York Center Drive in Butler Township is owned by development and investment firm The Witness Group (“TWG”). Hotel Equities manages TWG’s portfolio of hotels following the firm’s strategic partnership with TWG in September. “The owners and staff have done a phenomenal job preparing this hotel for its grand opening,” said HE’s VP of Operations, David Rosenberg. “The highest standards of cleanliness and safety precautions are in place and n...
Kimpton Marlowe Hotel Completes Guestroom and Suite Renovation
Kimpton Marlowe Hotel | October 22, 2020
Cambridge, MA - October 22, 2020 - Kimpton Marlowe Hotel is pleased to announce that its extensive guestroom redesign, which takes inspiration from the academic and literary history of the neighborhood surrounding the hotel, along with the scenic Charles River, is now complete. The project features a complete renovation of all 237 guestrooms and suites, all with floor to ceiling windows and spectacular views of the Boston skyline, hotel courtyard and Charles River, which the hotel overlooks. The guestroom renovation completes Phase I of Marlowe’s redesign; Phase II, to include all common areas, the Lobby and meeting and function spaces, is...
Mile High Hospitality Opens Canopy by Hilton Scottsdale Old Town
Canopy by Hilton | October 22, 2020
Scottsdale, Ariz. (Oct. 2020) - Old Town Scottsdale’s first new hotel in over a decade is now open, ushering in a vibrant Southwest energy infused with Mid-Century Modern sophistication to the neighborhood along with a new signature restaurant and expansive rooftop bar and lounge. Designed as a natural extension of the surrounding arts district, Canopy by Hilton Scottsdale Old Town, the new 177-room hotel at the northeast corner of First Street and Marshall Way, boasts spacious guestrooms and suites that strike a balance between contemporary elegance and impeccable design and features approximately 2,000 square-feet of meeting space. Boo...
A Glass Ceiling to Shatter
PolyU’s School of Hotel and Tourism Management | October 22, 2020
Efforts to shatter the “glass ceiling” and promote women’s equality in the hospitality and tourism workplace must start in universities, according to Professor Basak Denizci Guillet, Ph.D. graduate Dr Anna Pavesi, Professor Cathy Hsu and Dr Karin Weber of the School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. The researchers note that statistics paint a bleak picture of women’s involvement at the upper levels of the hospitality and tourism industry, both in Hong Kong and worldwide. Although progress is being made in closing the gender gap, social and institutional barriers continue to prevent talent...
Edouard Grosmangin Appointed Managing Director of Rosewood São Paulo
Rosewood São Paulo | October 22, 2020
Edouard Grosmangin has been appointed managing director of Rosewood São Paulo, a luxury hotel opening in 2021 in one of Brazil’s most vibrant cities. Housed in both a historic building and a new tower designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Jean Nouvel, the hotel is situated in the heart of the city’s Cidade Matarazzo complex. Rosewood São Paulo will be the brand’s inaugural property in South America and will bring a new wave of residential luxury to the region. In his role as managing director, Edouard will be responsible for overseeing all aspects of the new hotel, including its six restaurants and bars, as well as South Americ...
IHG Opens Staybridge Suites Dubai Al-Maktoum Airport
IHG | October 22, 2020
IHG Hotels & Resorts (IHG®), one of the world’s leading hotel companies, has further expanded its footprint in the region and continues bringing new brands to new markets with the opening of the first Staybridge Suites® in Dubai South in Al-Maktoum Airport, on October 17 2020. Renowned globally since 1997, Staybridge Suites is IHG’s upscale extended stay hotel brand that offers an elevated, residential-style hotel designed for multi-night business travellers and leisure travellers looking to break from the travel norm while on the road, be it for days or even months at a time. Designed to meet the needs of guests who may be stay...
As More Companies Let Employees Work From Home Permanently, What Is the Outlook of Business Travel?
Linchi Kwok | October 22, 2020
By Linchi Kwok When the pandemic hit the global economy in March, business travel was estimated to lose $820 billion in revenue. Under the best scenario, businesses were expected to reopen in late spring or early summer. As we entered into the summer, indicators showed travel and hospitality businesses were picking up, but we all knew travel recovery would not occur until people are taking business trips again. “Travel, as we knew it, is over,” concluded by Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky. Now in October, we still have not contained the coronavirus. To make it worse, new COVID-19 cases now surge again across the US and Europe. More co...
How to Audit (and Fix) Hotel Tax Rates to Save a Few Bucks
October 22, 2020
By Stephanie Smith With the amount of uncertainty in the world due to COVID19, now more than ever hotels must fight for every dollar! There is no easy reservation today. One of the most overlooked ways hotels can reduce their losses is by ensuring the correct tax rates are reflected on both your own website and all Online Travel Agency [OTAs] websites. Although seemingly intuitive, the review process is often ignored and forgotten. Once implemented, hotels are instantly guaranteed a few cents per reservations – which can really add up over time! Do a Tax Audit Against Your Own Hotel Website Check with your finance department on what...
Herman Kemp Appointed General Manager of New Hyatt Regency Phnom Penh
October 22, 2020
PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (Oct. 22, 2020) – Hyatt has appointed renowned hospitality professional Herman Kemp as general manager of Hyatt Regency Phnom Penh, the largest internationally branded hotel in the heart of Cambodia’s capital. A Dutch national with extensive experience in Southeast Asia, Kemp will oversee the pre-opening of the 247-room property, which will become the first Hyatt Regency hotel in Cambodia when it opens its doors in the first quarter of 2021. Kemp brings more than 20 years of hospitality experience to Hyatt Regency Phnom Penh, in a career that has taken him to acclaimed hotels and resorts in The Netherlands, Indo...
Miami-Dade County’s Hospitality Industry Recovering but Facing More Than $3 Billion in Losses This Year
Florida International University's Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management | October 22, 2020
MIAMI (Oct. 21, 2020) – Miami-Dade County hotel and restaurants – the two largest hospitality industries in South Florida – have taken a $3.36 billion dollar hit from COVID-19, according to a new study. The study released today by Florida International University's FIU Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management, in collaboration with the Greater Miami Convention and Visitor's Bureau (GMCVB), shows that from the time mandatory COVID-19-related business closures took effect in March until the end of August, the direct and indirect effects of the pandemic – including revenue loss, supply chain and business expenditures, op...
PROVision Welcomes John Burns as Senior Advisor
PROVision Partners | October 22, 2020
HFTP Hall of Fame Member Brings Over 28 Years of Consulting Expertise to the Firm NEW SMYRNA BEACH, FLORIDA, OCTOBER 22, 2020 — PROVision Partners (“PROVision”), a leading global travel and hospitality advisory firm, announces the appointment of John Burns as a Senior Advisor. Burns, identified by Lodging Magazine as one of the top ten hospitality experts changing the travel industry, brings over 28 years of consulting expertise to the firm. In his role with PROVision Burns will not only support the firm’s growth strategy but will also be available as a resource on key engagements. Burns has performed consulting services on an i...
Joe D’Alessandro and Ernest Wooden Jr. to Be Inducted Into U.S. Travel Hall of Leaders
U.S. Travel Association | October 22, 2020
WASHINGTON (October 22, 2020) — Travel industry leaders Joe D’Alessandro, president and CEO of the San Francisco Travel Association, and Ernest Wooden Jr., former president and CEO of the Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board, will be honored as the 2020 inductees into the U.S. Travel Association Hall of Leaders, the organization announced Wednesday. Distinguished individuals are named to U.S. Travel’s Hall of Leaders for “sustained, noteworthy contributions that have positively impacted the travel industry and raised industry-wide standards.” With these two inductions, 102 travel industry luminaries have been named to th...
Aptech Announces Next Version to Its Execuvue Business Intelligence Solution
Aptech Computer Systems, Inc. | October 22, 2020
Key features include new ‘Dashboard’ tool with stunning data visualizations and self-service capabilities giving hotel finance teams flexible access to information PITTSBURGH, Oct. 22, 2020 —Aptech, the industry standard for hospitality financial management, has released the next version of its Execuvue business intelligence solution. The web-based hospitality application gathers and coordinates data from a wide variety of corporate systems, including Smith Travel Research, into accessible, easily understood information with familiar browser commands. The NEW Execuvue features a completely redesigned user interface, making the cus...
Eight Considerations to Help Bring Groups Back in 2021
Larry Mogelonsky | October 21, 2020
By Larry Mogelonsky, MBA, P. Eng. (www.hotelmogel.com) There’s only so long our industry can depend on staycations, drive-to transients, workcations, hotel offices and any other localized travel trend emerging from the pandemic. Many hotels simply cannot justify their existence without a solid stream of midweek group blocks to pad topline revenues, so my hope is that the following will help you to achieve small wins in the MICE arena for 2021 in advance of a vaccine or any large-scale reopening with conventions and big events to follow. The reemergence of groups will start with those under, say, a dozen people before increasing in siz...
Nominations Open for HSMAI 2020 Top 25 and Lifetime Achievement Honors
HSMAI | October 21, 2020
The Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association (HSMAI) Americas is now accepting nominations for its Lifetime Achievement and Top 25 Extraordinary Minds in Sales, Marketing, and Revenue Optimization honors. HSMAI will recognize honorees during the HSMAI Adrian Awards Dinner in conjunction with the HSMAI Marketing Strategy Conference and other HSMAI Marketing Week events in 2021. Nominations are open until December 1, 2020. HSMAI Lifetime Achievement Awards HSMAI’s Albert E. Koehl Award for Lifetime Achievement in Hospitality Marketing and Winthrop W. Grice Award for Lifetime Achievement in Hospitality Public Relations recognize hos...
NextPax Appoints Eric Leong to Lead Asia Pacific
NextPax | October 21, 2020
Accelerated expansion of channel management solution and geographic coverage Almere, 21 October 2020 - NextPax, the global channel management provider, today announced Eric Leong has been appointed as Executive Vice President APAC. Eric is based in Singapore and will be responsible for expanding NextPax’s business in the region in terms of revenue and geographic growth. Eric will lead the expansion of NextPax’ presence in the region through growing supply and extending strategic partnerships. ‘We have been steadily growing in the APAC region and it’s now time for “boots” on the ground in the Asia Pacific Region,’ explains Erik...
Hotel Zena, a Groundbreaking Hotel Dedicated to Female Empowerment, Opens With Volara + Google in Every Guestroom
Volara | October 21, 2020
Integration and implementation of the Google Hotel Solution expands Volara’s corporate relationship with Viceroy Hotels & Resorts and launches a new relationship with the Pebblebrook Hotel Trust October 21, 2020 — New York and Washington D.C. — When Hotel Zena opened its doors this month in downtown Washington, D.C., Volara was there to get guests talking via Google Nest Hubs in each of its 191 guestrooms. Implementation of Volara’s contactless guest engagement and touchless room controls solution is part of a systemwide rollout by Viceroy Hotels & Resorts to voice-enable all guestrooms at its luxury boutique hotels. Thi...
STR: U.S. Q3 2020 Hotel Performance
STR | October 21, 2020
HENDERSONVILLE, Tennessee—The U.S. hotel industry reported its lowest third-quarter occupancy level on record, according to Q3 2020 data from STR. Q3 2020 (percentage change from Q3 2019): Occupancy: 48.0% (-32.2%) Average daily rate (ADR): US$101.25 (-24.1%) Revenue per available room (RevPAR): US$48.58 (-48.5%) The absolute occupancy and RevPAR levels were the lowest for any Q3 in STR’s U.S. database. Among the Top 25 Markets, Oahu Island, Hawaii, saw the lowest occupancy level (24.1%), while Norfolk/Virginia Beach, Virginia, experienced the highest occupancy (61.4%). Three additional Top 25 Markets reported occu...
STR: Canada Q3 2020 Hotel Performance
STR | October 21, 2020
HENDERSONVILLE, Tennessee—The Canadian hotel industry saw higher performance from the previous quarter, but at overall low levels, according to Q3 2020 data from STR. Q3 2020 (percentage change from Q3 2019): Occupancy: 38.1% (-49.8%) Average daily rate (ADR): CAD131.65 (-28.0%) Revenue per available room (RevPAR): CAD50.15 (-63.9%) The absolute occupancy level was the lowest for any third quarter in STR’s Canada database, but was more than double the level from Q2 2020 (19.4%). The ADR level was the lowest for a Q3 since 2009. In absolute values, July was Canada’s lowest month of the quarter for occupancy (34.0%) an...
New Owners for Historic Maxwell Mansion Hotel in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin
Maxwell Mansion | October 21, 2020
LAKE GENEVA, Wis. (Oct. 21, 2020) – One of the most intriguing lodging properties in Lake Geneva, Wis., the Maxwell Mansion, is getting new owners. Luke and Monica Pfeifer, Wisconsin natives, will take over the reins from Andrew Fritz, who has owned the property since 2012 and is credited with its rejuvenation as one of the most glamorous inns in this storied lake resort community. For more on the Maxwell Mansion which dates back to 1856, its password-required Speakeasy , Apothecary cocktail bar, crystal-laden ballroom, and shaded gardens, visit www.MaxwellMansion1856.com. The address is 421 Baker Street, just two blocks east of Geneva Lake...
2020 HVS Lodging Tax Report – USA
Thomas Hazinski | October 21, 2020
By Thomas Hazinski, Joseph Hansel While prior HVS annual lodging tax studies have looked back on tax rates and revenues across the United States, this ninth annual Lodging Tax Study also looks forward and assesses the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. This analysis of 25 major US markets illustrates the depth of the impact on the hospitality industry and projects a pattern of recovery over the next few years. HVS also provides historical data on tax rates and the collection and distribution of revenue from lodging taxes levied in all 50 States and the 150 largest US cities. Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic has dealt a bigger blow to the...
Radisson Hotel & Conference Center Green Bay Completes Extensive $23 Million Renovation
Radisson | October 21, 2020
Minneapolis - October 21, 2020 - Radisson Hotel & Conference Center Green Bay today announced details of its renovation to the public. The hotel underwent an extensive $23 million renovation over the past two years. The renovation was completed in three phases with updates to the lobby, corridors, guest rooms and suites, conference rooms and the exterior. The guest rooms now feature the latest Radisson brand design with comfortable and natural elements encouraging a balanced environment with Scandinavian inspired hospitality, along with recognizing the Oneida Nation heritage. Additionally, the hotel added a marketplace and Sky World Coffe...
Hyatt Regency West Hanoi Opens in Vietnam
Hyatt Regency | October 21, 2020
CHICAGO (October 21, 2020) – Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) today announced the opening of Hyatt Regency West Hanoi, the first Hyatt hotel in Hanoi and the third Hyatt hotel in Vietnam. Located in Nam Tu Liem district, Hanoi’s new business district near major sporting and convention venues, Hyatt Regency West Hanoi offers 519 modern guestrooms where business travelers and leisure guests can enjoy seamless and relaxing experiences. Hyatt Regency West Hanoi, which has been rebranded from an existing hotel, has undergone an extensive renovation throughout all guestrooms, public areas, event and meeting spaces, and culinary venues, as wel...
