To say the least it has been a busy week for everyone I’ve talked to.  Hope all of you are excited about the coming weekend!  I know I am… one of my goals with this blog is to share valuable timely tidbits of information regarding the meetings and events industry.  This week I received some interesting updates from our hotel partners.

Omni Hotels Use of Select Points Helpful with Industry Memberships — Meeting planners can now be rewarded with $500 towards a meetings/travel industry organization when booking a meeting at any Omni Hotel. As part of our Select Rewards program, you can receive their reward upfront, immediately after the contract has been signed.  Do you have a program yet to book for 2009 … check this out!

Disney Ramps Up Hawaii Project … Walt Disney Parks and Resorts is releasing new details on its expansive project for a mixed-use resort in Hawaii. Construction has started on the 21-acre, oceanfront resort at the Ko Olina Resort & Marina development on the island’s western side, and it will include 1,066 rooms and 63,000 square feet of meeting space.

Hyatt “More Meetings” Offer — Save by keeping it central, When you book with the Hyatt More Meetings Offer, you’ll receive your choice of valuable rewards. And the more you book, the more rewards your group will receive.  See attached PDF for more information.  If interested contact Mark Henry, National Sales Contact for Hyatt Hotels.  He can be reached by phone at 847-304-0234 or by email at mhenry@hyatt.com.  Please mention to Mark that you heard about this program through my blog!

Hilton Hotels changes name to Hilton Worldwide — The hotel operator formerly called Hilton Hotels Corp said on Wednesday that it has changed its name to Hilton Worldwide and unveiled a new logo.  With the addition of the word “worldwide,” the new logo unites all members of the organization across all parts of the globe with one shared vision for success. See article for further details.

InterContinental Hotels  Introducing ‘Meetings Options’ — To select Hotels (see article) IHG is offering some fantastic booking incentives for smaller meetings.  Host a meeting until August 31, 2010 with a minimum of 10 bedrooms per night and a meeting component and receive not only special attrition allowances, complimentary rooms and an exclusive Delegate Package but you can also select three benefits from our bespoke options.  Check it out!

Gaylord to offer 5 Million shares of stock — Gaylord Entertainment Co. announced plans Tuesday for a public offering of 5 million shares of its common stock.  The Nashville-based hotelier plans to use the proceeds from the sale to help buy or redeem its $259.8 million outstanding senior notes due 2013, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Cruise the Turquoise Lagoons of Bora Bora — Looking for a fresh exotic destination for your meeting or incentive program.  Four Seasons Resort Bora Bora’s Catamaran allows your group to experience the beauty and adventure found in this Tahitian paradise in a way never before possible.

If you hear of any unique or breaking news in the hotel business please share it with me and I will post it here on this blog.  Moving forward I am going to try to make this a weekly column, based upon there being information available to share.

Have a great weekend!

Last week I posted a blog entitled “Hotel Internet Access – Luxury or Norm??” My objective was to initiate a conversation regarding the pros and cons of hotels charging guests a fee for Internet access.  I posted a link to this article on Twitter, Facebook, and several business groups on LinkedIn.

Regarding the response from readers here are some statistics:

• Through blog analytics I tracked 364 unique views of the article.
• Across the various locations I posted it there were 36 comments submitted.
• Only One (1) hotel responded (see below comment)
• In a Twt Poll I embedded in the article 43 people responded and 86% (37 votes) said Internet Service should be provided at no charge to hotel guests.  Another 12% (5 votes) were ok with paying a fee but felt it should be $5.00 or less (US Dollars)

In follow up I thought you would be interested in viewing some of the feedback received.  Not surprisingly, a whopping majority of people responding believe Hotels should offer Internet Access service on a complimentary basis to hotel guests, or at the very least at a significantly reduced fee.  There are some exceptions to this of course.

Here are a few of the “direct comments” made by readers:

“There is a HUGE difference in infrastructure investment and ongoing bandwidth costs between installing and managing a wifi network at a Hampton Inn vs. a Hilton & Towers. It’s really unreasonable to think that a hotel shouldn’t try to recover some of this expense and it’s unfair to fold it in the room rate for those that don’t use it.”

By Dave Lutz, Managing Director, Velvet Chainsaw Consulting

“Charging for internet access should be on the way out. Pretty soon, charging for internet access will be as outdated as seeing a pay phone in the lobby.”

By Allie Chamberlain, CMP Meeting and Event Strategist, Capitol Planning LLC

“It is my belief (and our hotel’s practice) that internet should be free. It is too important, especially to the business traveler, to have this service included. To charge upwards of $15 a day, especially in our current economic condition, is risking a long term relationship over a fee that is unnecessary.”

By J.J. DeBrosse, Crowne Plaza hotel Indianapolis

“My attendees are outright DEMANDING that it be available for free, period. And I have a somewhat older demographic at most of my meetings. The fact is, mid-priced hotels usually offer it all over for free, so when you come to a conference and pay a pricey room rate at a supposedly nicer convention hotel, you’re just MAD when you have to pay … additionally for the internet.”

By Joyce Paschall, Director of Education and Meeting Services, American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine

“At this point in time, every hotel should be providing complimentary internet. The cost to bring internet into a building compared to what hotels charge for access is ridiculous… I prefer a more inclusive approach to hotel rates, rather than the nickel and diming of planners and attendees.”

By Jessica Levin, Manager of Communications, Moore Stephens North America, Inc.

“I don’t think hotels should charge for WiFi internet access. Do they charge me when I turn on the lights? Do they charge me when I turn on the faucet in my room? Do they charge me for the air I breathe? WiFi access is a common utility that all business professionals need to access on a daily basis. It should be a regular benefit of the hotel just like water and electricity.”

By Jeff Hurt, Director of Education & Events, National Association of Dental Plans

“If I’m paying less to stay at a hotel with free Internet and probably free breakfast every day but with comparable amenities to a more posh hotel (pool, fitness room, gift shop) – why would I choose the more expensive option? To have the option of paying $20/day for parking? For what they might consider nicer decor? It doesn’t equate. And in this climate when the business proposition doesn’t make sense, it’s just not going to endure.”

By Midori Connolly, CEO, Pulse Staging, Inc.

I did some further research on the Internet and learned a recent AH&LA poll revealed 70.55% of travelers would choose not to stay in a hotel that charged for Internet Access.  Today I did a Twitter search (using “Search.twitter.com”) referencing the keywords “Hotel Internet Access” and not surprisingly there were dozens of tweets in the “search return” complaining about hotels charging for Internet Access.

One blog I came across, called the “Kayak Insider” offered the following tips for circumventing hotel Internet Access charges:

• Join loyalty clubs (frequent Guest) before your stay, as members often receive perks like Internet access free of charge
• Invest in a device like an Apple AirPort Express, which allows you to share your wireless connection with up to 10 other people. If you’re traveling with another person, you can pay the fee one time and share the connection.
• You’ve got nothing to lose by asking hotel staff or a manager to make a deal with you. Try explaining that you won’t be using the free continental breakfast or evening happy hour, for example, and you may end up getting the charges removed from your bill.
• Before you book your reservation, search for hotel rates and packages that already include Internet access.

One thing is pretty clear… the business model of charging Hotel guests for Internet access fee is not going away anytime soon.  In the meantime I believe it is important for folks to speak up and share their opinions as that is what drives change.  I would love to hear from the Hotel industry with their opinions… would love to hear the reasoning behind this business model!

What are your thoughts regarding this subject?  Do you know of other creative ways to avoid these charges for both yourself and your attendees, if you manage events?  If you represent a hotel, how do you justify these charges given the current business environment?  Please share your feedback!

These days many of us are connected to the Internet perpetually, whether with our Smartphones, laptops or home workstations.  Our customers, colleagues and friends expect us to be accessible, and not just in the 9-5 realm.  That is reality.

Folks traveling frequently, as part of their job, face the dilemma of balancing the business needs of the trip with everyday responsibilities.  Since much work these days is done online an Internet connection at the “home away from home,” (hotel), is a necessity, not a luxury.

Unfortunately, some companies don’t view Internet access as mandatory, for their traveling employees.  To me, this is shortsighted, but that’s for another discussion, at another time.  The focus of this blog post is to weigh in on the still-pervasive belief, by many hotel companies that charging hotel guests for Internet service is a smart business strategy.

This morning I read a news article posted in the USA Today addressing this subject.  According to a USA TODAY survey of 80 hotel brands, 40% charge such a fee at all or most of their U.S. hotels. The charge can vary at hotels within the same brand but often ranges from $9.95 to $14.95 daily.

One Hotel company, Gaylord Hotels, charges a mandatory “resort fee,” at all their properties, currently $15 per day added to the room rate.  The resort fees includes: local phone calls (first 20 min. of each), toll-free and credit calls (first 20 min. of each), high-speed Internet access in guest room, access to hotel’s state-of-the-art fitness center, bottled water (two per room, per day) and a daily newspaper.

“As long as hotels can generate the revenue, they will charge for it …  There is no more telephone revenue, and this is one way to replace it.” Jeff Weinstein — editor in chief,  Hotels magazine

I have discussed this issue with many event professionals and the majority of them find these types of fees, especially when they are mandatory, to be a challenge.  In the interest of getting an objective opinion on this issue I created a TwtPoll to address this topic. Please vote as your opinions are much appreciated and will be referenced in a follow up article.

Personally I believe Hotels charging for this service are missing out on a huge customer service opportunity.  In a difficult economy, where business people are expected to do more for less, with fewer resources, offering this service for free would foster very positive customer feedback, and even brand loyalty.  What do you think?  Here are the opinions of two Event professionals:

“I think all hotels should offer Internet access (at the very least WiFi) at no charge in both sleeping and meeting rooms. In many of the lower priced hotels they are already doing this and many upscale hotels offer it at no charge to their best customers. Practically every business traveler has a PDA, Computer or some device with them so they can to stay in touch when out of the office. Hotels who provide this service to their guests without nickel and dime-ing them, I think, will get more business and more loyalty. I am finding at my citywide conventions, the hotels offering free WiFi fill up first.   For our smaller meetings contained in one hotel we always negotiate to get free WiFi for our attendees…at the very least in their sleeping rooms.” Deidre Ross, Director — Conference Services, American Library Association

“Hotels should no longer charge their guests a fee for internet access. At first it [internet access] was considered a luxury, but now it is common…so why charge for something that guests expect? In fact, I specifically seek out hotels that provide free internet access and encourage my clients to do the same.” Emilie Barta, Professional Trade Show Presenter

Please share your thoughts with us on this fiery issue.  I look forward to your responses!!!

One of my goals with this blog is to experiment with different types of content providing variety to my readers.  This week I began with a humorous article on Monday.  Now I present you with “Hotel Bytes,” a weekly blog focusing on interesting events in the hotel business…

Fontainebleau  Spars With Subcontractors

The Fontainebleau Miami Beach Resort, which completed a comprehensive restoration last November (2008) is known as one of the most iconic destination resorts in the world.   The company invested well over a billion dollars in the project.

There has been a significant ongoing billing dispute between Fontainebleau and some of its construction subcontractors.  For details of this challenge refer to the news article published by the Palm Beach Post.

Yesterday I received a copy of an open letter addressing this issue on behalf of the resort.  The letter, signed by Howard Karawan, Chief Operating Officer of Fontainiebleau Resorts, LLC can be viewed here.

Here are the key points of that letter:

• The disputes with subcontractors that have arisen represent a very small fraction of the dollars spent by Fontainebeau on this project.
• Such disputes are commonplace in projects of this magnitude but understandably, their resolution is nonetheless important to all those involved.
• During the final stages of construction the resort uncovered significant over-billing by various construction entities.
• This discovery prompted an extensive audit of all work performed by outside professionals contracted for the project.
• While the audit verified the alleged over-billing actions by some subcontractors, it also caused payment delays for the many honest ones who worked on this project, as well.
• Fontainebleau is working to bring these legal matters to an end by continuing to evaluate all outstanding liens and has every intention of paying for work that was completed as agreed.
• The resort states the “business implications of these legal matters in no way affect our day to day operations at the resort.”

Scottsdale “Room Rate” Special

Earlier this week, I posted a tweet regarding a “Room Rate Promotion” unveiled by Hoteliers in Scottsdale, AZ.  The article, posted by IGroupToday can be viewed here.  The essentials of the offer are as follows:

• Submit a proposal received from any hotel or resort property from across the contiguous U.S. (except Maricopa County), Hawaii, Canada, or Caribbean to the Scottsdale CVB.
• The Scottsdale CVB will match that offer to a comparable Scottsdale property and meet or beat the room rate, dates, meeting facility space and room night requirements.
• This program is valid for new meetings booked and actualized in Scottsdale through March 31, 2010.
• 41 hotels/resorts in the Scottsdale are participating.  See the Igrouptoday article for more information.
• The Scottsdale CVB can be reached at 480-421-9733.

If you have questions or would like more information on these news clips or assistance please feel free to contact me!

If you hear about interesting news in the hotel biz please post it here in the comments section, or you can email me at mike.mccurry@experient-inc.com.  Have a great Holiday weekend!