http://www.hotelchatter.com/ Hotel Reviews, Hotel Ratings, Hotel Openings en-us Copyright 2008 - SFO Media 2012-02-14T04:24:48Z HotelChatter HotelChatter http://www.hotelchatter.com/images/hcwhite.jpg http://www.hotelchatter.com/ http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2011/11/16/85855/884 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/61268/What1.jpg" class="top"><p><i>We like to keep it fun but informative here at HotelChatter so our newest series, <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/tag/What%20Is%20This"><b>What is This?</b></a> is devoted to odd-looking items in hotel rooms that upon first glance look as if they serve only a decorative purpose. But everything happens for a reason, right? And we're here to tell you what these things really do.</i> <p>On Monday we were <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2011/11/14/155215/88/hotels/Getting_Wooed_By_The_Artisanal_Lobby_At_Forty_1_North">snooping</a> around the gleaming Italian-tiled atrium inside <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Forty+1+North/ian/333170"><b>Forty 1 North</b></a>. What we also happened to find inside the rooms was this plastic framed hole in the wall. No, it's not an air freshener. And no, it's not art. In fact, it doesn't 'do' something as much as it <i>allows</i> for something else to happen. ASchechter 2011-11-16T09:30:02-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2011/11/14/155215/88 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/61268/FortyForty2.jpg" class="top"><p>Sad to say, but summer fun&#151;and with it, DJ parties, al fresco dining and outdoor weddings&#151;at <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Forty+1+North/ian/333170"><b>Forty 1 North</b></a> has come to an end. Though we stopped by the hotel during uncharacteristically warm low 60s weather, the three outdoor spaces (Pavilion Deck, Gallery and Courtyard, all located below the lobby) are pretty much out done for the season. <p>But! Don't let that stop you from a panoramic long weekend in New England's prettiest oceanfront town, Newport, Rhode Island. The LEED-certified hotel, which opened in summer 2010, has found a way to balance that colonial, harbor town feel with a kind of Morgans-esque beauty that feels more state-of-the-art than other properties in the area. Small details, <b>like Italian ASchechter 2011-11-14T17:00:01-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2011/8/11/134924/280 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/1425/nylowarwick_lifestylesuite.jpg" class="top"><p> It took more than a year after much of the hotel was damaged during massive floods but finally, after extensive renovations, the <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/NYLO+Hotel+Warwick/local/1286"><b>NYLO Hotel</b></a> in Warwick, Rhode Island will be open once again this Monday. <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9P1E7H03.htm">Business Week</a> reports: <blockquote><p>Susan Shaw, the new general manager, said the 163-room hotel will open with between 35 and 40 employees, down from 60 at the time of the flood. It will add employees and should reach full capacity by early next year, she said. It will look much like it did before it closed. The restaurant will offer a new menu and have what Shaw described as a more "mellow" feel.</blockquote></p><p>Heading to Warwick and want to give the NYLO juliana 2011-08-12T16:00:01-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2011/2/18/91835/9567 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/4912/RenaissanceProvidence.jpg" class="top"></p> <p>We just got back from a quick trip to Rhode Island, and had a chance to peek at the <strong><a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Renaissance+Providence+Hotel/ian/252949">Renaissance Providence Downtown</a></strong> on the recommendation of a local friend. Turns out, the building, which is across from the State House, has <a href="http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F07E2DB1131F937A15751C1A9609C8B63">a fascinating history</a>. <p>Original construction of the Neoclassical landmark started in 1926, when the building was meant to be a Masonic temple. But after a lack of funds halted construction in 1928, the building was abandoned and left largely untouched. A local historian told the New York Times in 2006:<blockquote><p>When I first came to work in the 1970s, you could go in there, and you could see the hand tools that were still sitting pbb 2011-02-18T10:31:12-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2010/8/12/17641/8481 <![CDATA[<p><object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/QXt2MO_tho8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/QXt2MO_tho8?fs=1&amp;hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object><p>We've got a thing for <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/tag/hotel animals">cute hotel animals</a> here and we've long covered the animals hard at "work" in hotels such as Kimpton Hotels <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/10/30/15959/963/hotels/A_Director_of_Pet_Relations_Gets_Put_to_Work_On_Halloween">Directors of Pet Relations</a> and even The Algonquin's fashionable housecat, <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2008/8/8/115620/2271/hotels/Snapshot_Project_Kitty_Runway_a_Success_but_Felines_Look_Nonplussed">Matilda.</a> But the dog in residence at the <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Hyatt+Regency+Newport/ian/127221"><b>Hyatt Regency Newport</b></a> in Rhode Island might be the hardest working hotel dog in the biz. <p>That's because <a href="http://www.schmittysays.com/"><b>Schimitty</b></a>, a Yorkshire Terrier, delivers the news with Meteorologist and ABC Producer Ron Trotta. Ok "delivers" might be too strong of a word has Schmitty just hangs out while Ron gives the weather report but if you watch <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXt2MO_tho8">the juliana 2010-08-13T14:46:21-05:00 Search HotelChatter string http://www.hotelchatter.com/search/