Photo of the Day
Jun 17
Misc Tidbits hotels, snowbird resort No Comments
This photo was snapped by our friends at the Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort in Utah…
…who know Utah had British foxes? This little guy is walking on the wrong side of the road!
Trend Watch – Room Rates
May 17
Places to Stay economy, guest-friendly hotel tips, hotels, meeting ideas, meeting planner feedback No Comments
Room rates are creeping back up – or are they?
Smith Travel Research data from January shows that urban hotels at 66% occupancy while suburban hotels are at 58%.
As a result, urban hotels are offering fewer discounts for rooms – but suburban property rates are still lower than 2009 levels…which is shifting the demand.
Are you booking more meetings in the suburbs to secure lower rates? Have you experienced higher rates in urban areas?
Welcoming the Innovention Network
Nov 18
Member News, Places to Stay hotels, Innovention Network, Marriott No Comments
ConventionPlanit.com now offers Marriott International’s 60 Innovention Network properties on ConventionPlanit.com.
The Innovention Network is a collection of world-class, integrated J.W. Marriott, Autograph Collection, Renaissance, and Marriott hotels and resorts dedicated to providing the ultimate meeting experience. Together, these properties offer the largest collection of meeting space in any hotel chain (4.7 million square feet), employ more than 150 Certified Meeting Professionals, offer more efficient group billing options, and use standardized post-convention reporters to ensure the transfer of knowledge and best practices from one property to another.
“We created the Innovention Network to save customers time and money and give them the best meeting experience possible,” says Luis Lamar, Marriott’s vice president of convention and resort hotels in the Americas.
“Partnering with ConventionPlanit.com advances these goals, because their search engine is easy to use, charges no commissions, and is highly focused on service through its RFP Valet® program and other features that deliver results for meeting professionals.”
Each of the Innovention Network properties has a Sapphire listing on ConventionPlanit.com, which includes a property description, meeting room specifications, photographs, links to the property website, RFP template, and more.
“In the eight years since ConventionPlanit.com was designed by a group of visionary meeting professionals, we have continually reinvented ourselves with new and better ways to serve the meetings industry,” says ConventionPlanit.com Co-Founder and Principal Katherine Markham, CHME.
“We see Marriott doing the same thing through the Innovention Network. So we are just delighted to partner with them to give these properties the additional exposure they deserve.”
Each Innovention Network property will also be listed on VenueDirectory.com in Europe through a partnership that ConventionPlanit.com has with that online search directory.
For more information, visit ConventionPlanit.com!
2011 Per Diem Rates Announced
Aug 31
News, Places to Stay economy, hotels, meeting industry, per diem rates No Comments
The new fiscal year per diem rates were announced yesterday by the General Services Administration (GSA):
Rates Start: October 1, 2010
Rates End: September 30, 2011
The standard Continental United States (CONUS) per diem rate increased to $77 per night.
GSA reported the average daily rate (ADR) for hotel rooms is down 5.73% from fiscal year 2010.
There are several non-standard area lodging rate changes that have been reduced, making them more affordable to visit:
• New York City (Manhattan) fall high season: reduced to $269 from FY2010 $340
• Colorado Springs: reduced to $84 from FY2010 $88
• Las Vegas: three seasons reduced to one, rates down from FY2010 high of $118 to $93
• Miami, Fla., for the Miami-Dade area mid-season: down to $151 from FY2010 $152
• Chicago, Ill., early summer area high season: reduced to $166 from FY2010 $211
• Charleston, SC: down to $132 from FY2010 $142
• Los Angeles, Calif.: reduced to $123 from FY10 $135
• Kansas City, Mo: down to $99 from FY2010 $107
• Cincinnati, Ohio: unchanged from FY2010 at $115
• Seattle, Wash: reduced to $139 from FY2010 $159
How these rate changes affect your planning this fall?
This Summer, Corks Fly Free
Aug 11
Member News, Places to Stay guest-friendly hotel tips, hotels, Kimpton, unique activities No Comments
Here’s a fun summertime offer from our good friends at Kimpton:
Get uncorked at Kimpton Restaurants and byow (bring your own wine)!
There’s no doubt that you’re stashing some stellar bottles of wine at home. So now through Labor Day, feel free to bring a bottle of wine, or two, to share with friends at any Kimpton Restaurant. Corkage is complimentary all summer long.
Learn more about planing a meeting at a Kimpton hotel or restaurant.
Summer Meeting Deals for Last Minute Meetings
Jul 07
Member News, Places to Stay hotels, meeting ideas No Comments
Most of us expect to pay top dollar when it’s last minute. Yet, you can find special offers for any season you choose on ConventionPlanit.com — It’s simple!
Hotels and convention centers needing to fill certain timeframes are extending great deals for your meeting – a virtual win-win! Check out some Divine Deal samplings below with special offerings for this summer:
The Bermuda Group Delegate Promotion for the Fairmont Hamilton Princess and The Fairmont Southampton offers group customers a $200 Credit per Delegate on new bookings of 15+ rooms with a minimum 3 day-stay.
Confirm your next event at the Ontario Convention Center in Southern California and receive up to a 20% rebate to the master account.
Some minimum requirements apply. To learn more about these special offerings and other great deals visit Divine Deals on ConventionPlanit.com!
Memorable Hotel Pets
Oct 19
Member News, Places to Stay guest-friendly hotel tips, hotels, Kimpton, unique activities 1 Comment
If you have a soft spot for pets, like us, you’ll appreciate ABC News’ list of America’s most adorable hotel pets.
Kimpton Hotels surely wins for the most pet friendly hotels – several of their properties made this list for friendly animal mascots, including the Hotel Monaco Alexandria and The Muse.
What’s your favorite animal on the list? Have you encountered a personal favorite that didn’t make the list?
Tips for Hotel Privacy
Oct 07
News best travel practices, guest-friendly hotel tips, hotels, travel tips No Comments
With Erin Andrews peeping tom causing a stir throughout the country and raising security issues among hotels, we can’t help but think of a few ways for the hotel guest to take safety into their own hands.
Even though many of the large hotel chains are reviewing and investigating their privacy policies, we see no harm in putting a few tips into practice now.
1. Keep your room number private: Be aware that at check in, it’s standard for the clerk to write your room number down on the key card instead of saying it out loud.
2. Stop a Peeping Tom: smear Vaseline on the inside of the peephole lens or place a piece of duct tape over the peephole, as Peter Greenberg recommends, to prevent anyone from seeing inside.
3. Inspect your room: Look under the bed, in the closet, bathroom and shower upon entering your room for anything (or anyone) suspicious.
4. Deadbolt your door: Be sure to deadbolt your door after entering the room – prevents any unwanted parties from entering without your permission; whether it be a housekeeper, maintenance crew, intruder, or a guest assigned mistakenly to the same room.
What are some other safety precautions you practice when traveling? What do you think of the press this situation is receiving? In general, do you feel safe when you stay at a hotel?
Historical San Francisco Penthouse Updated
Sep 22
Member News, Places to Stay Fairmont, Hotel Rennovations, hotels, San Francisco hotels No Comments
You’re probably familiar with the San Francisco Fairmont for its 55,000 square feet of meeting space or for the views of the San Francisco Bay – but it’s the penthouse that may be the most famous.
The spacious suite spans the entire eighth floor of the hotel, whose guests have included JFK, Prince Charles and Representatives of the Big Four – and just completed a major renovation.
In an Associated Press interview, Tom Klein, regional vice president general manager of the hotel, says
“You’ll just be blown away.”
For $15,000 a night, the three bedroom suite with dining room, living room, library, and terrace comes complete with a butler, housekeeper, chef, masseuse, personal trainer, fully stocked gourmet kitchen, plus the use of a Ferrari California.
Some updates in the renovation include a newly remodeled kitchen and removing the 1,800 pieces of etched glass that make up the ceiling of the billiard room for a cleaning.
Hotel Chains Trading Stars for Cash
Aug 25
News, Places to Stay economy, Five Diamond, Five Star, hotels, meeting industry No Comments
The latest casualty of the struggling hospitality industry is the rating system itself.
Bloomberg.com reports many luxury hotel brands have begun cutting ratings to save costs.
The AAA and Mobil rating systems identify specific service requirements for hotels to receive a five-diamond or five-star rating. These services can be quite costly for the hotels.
According to the Mobil Travel Guide, if the hotel has a pool, guests arriving for a swim should be escorted to their chairs and offered refreshment. Welcome gifts and thoughtful items on pillows at turn down service are expected. Ice buckets must be glass, metal or stone, and tongs must also be provided.
The Bloomberg.com article quotes Stephen Bollenbach, former chief executive officer of Hilton Hotels Corp.:
“Ratings aren’t based on making good returns on your investment.”
If the trend of hotels cutting back on services and lowering ratings continues, will rating systems become irrelevant? Are they outdated?
As a guest, how important is the AAA or Mobil rating in your booking decision? Can hotels survive on reputation alone?
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