http://www.hotelchatter.com/ Hotel Reviews, Hotel Ratings, Hotel Openings en-us Copyright 2008 - SFO Media 2009-11-23T18:17:57Z HotelChatter HotelChatter http://www.hotelchatter.com/images/hcwhite.jpg http://www.hotelchatter.com/ http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/11/23/121022/29 <![CDATA[<img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/32083/acehotel.jpg" class="top"><p> <p>Behind shut doors and "Do Not Disturb" signs, hotel rooms hold stories to tell, and maybe a few secrets that shouldn't be repeated. Illicit liaisons, romantic fairy tales, or just plain goofball mishaps take place on any given day and can serve as cinematic fodder.<p> That's precisely the idea behind a new partnership between <a href="http://www.massify.com/"><b>Massify</b></a>, an online network of filmmakers, actors, and crew members, production company <b>Killer Films</b>, and New York's <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Ace+Hotel+New+York/local/1313"><b>Ace Hotel</b></a>. <p>"One hotel. Thousands of stories." reads the tag line to a recent contest sponsored by Massify, Killer, and Ace. They called on members to submit creative takes on hotel stories, as they launched a search for material to be turned into "very Heidi Atwal 2009-11-23T13:11:06-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/11/23/111853/77 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/1425/loewsrenorooms.jpg" class="top"><p> <p>Image is everything in South Beach. And keeping up with the hot new things requires maintenance. So, with all those swank new hotels opening up further up the beach&#151;the <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/W+South+Beach/local/126"><b>W South Beach</b></a>, <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Hotel+Gansevoort+South+::+Paradiso+Miami/local/125"><b>Gansevoort South</b></a>, et. al.&#151;one of Miami Beach&#146;s stalwart oceanfront hotels, the <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Loews+Miami+Beach+Hotel/ian/150417"><b>Loews Miami Beach</b></a>, is getting a facelift. A $50 million facelift at that. </p> <p>The Loews has been a Miami Beach landmark for 10 years now, so it&#146;s probably time for a bit of a spruce up. As one of the chain&#146;s most visible properties, the hotel&#146;s renovations were a priority for Loews Chairman and CEO, <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/tag/jonathan tisch">Jonathan Tisch</a>. It was Tisch who asked for a more dramatic, open, and MsRebecca 2009-11-23T12:10:12-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/11/23/95313/552 <![CDATA[<embed src="http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f8/1321361467" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" flashVars="videoId=51904052001&playerId=1321361467&viewerSecureGatewayURL=https://console.brightcove.com/services/amfgateway&servicesURL=http://services.brightcove.com/services&cdnURL=http://admin.brightcove.com&domain=embed&autoStart=false&" base="http://admin.brightcove.com" name="flashObj" width="486" height="412" seamlesstabbing="false" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" swLiveConnect="true" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/shockwave/download/index.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed> <p>When we think of Boston hotels, we tend to think of stately properties like the Taj and the Fairmont Copley Plaza&#151;places befitting the city&#146;s preppy-Yankee vibe. But with the Morgans Hotel Group now in town, that image is getting a shake up. The new <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/The+Ames+Hotel/local/1568"><b>Ames Hotel</b></a> brings some serious sexiness to Boston&#146;s financial district, and you know what? We kinda like it.</p> <p><b>Location</b><br> The Ames is just around the corner from Faneuil Hall, amid banks and legal firms in the financial district. And since this is Boston, where blocks are small, it&#146;s also a short walk to Boston Common. The New England Center for Homeless Veterans is MsRebecca 2009-11-23T11:22:04-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/11/23/103744/91 <![CDATA[<img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/17697/copley_square_hotel.jpg" class="top"></p> <p>After some incredulity over how many Boston hotels have Copley in their names, the New York Times this weekend reviewed the revamped, historic <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Copley+Square+Hotel/ian/114172"><strong>Copley Square Hotel</strong></a>. &#147;Until this year, C-Square was a historic but faded enterprise: not the kind of place to earn cool points with your teenager on a college visiting tour,&#148; the Times writes.</p> <p>But after $18 million in renovations, the hotel is once again ready for prime time &#151; just as, ahem, some of us have been <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2008/4/15/101820/716/hotels/Copley_Square_Hotel_Gets_Joan_Rivers_Style_Revamp">telling you</a> all year.</p> <p><strong>Highlights:</strong> The bathroom&#146;s wall featured &#147;unusual reading material: the poem &#145;Paul Revere&#146;s Ride,&#146; by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, in cursive.&#148; &#147;Super-speedy&#148; room service that arrived in less than 10 minutes (though unfortunately, KatieK 2009-11-23T11:07:21-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/11/23/94021/654 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/21888/mandarin_barcelona.jpg" class="top"> <p>Well here&#146;s a nice surprise to start the week. Despite our fears, the <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Mandarin+Oriental+Barcelona/ian/333047"><b>Mandarin Oriental</b></a> Barcelona is going to open on schedule this Thursday. <p>When we say schedule, of course, we mean delayed schedule. The hotel was originally down to open 29 October, but when the date came and went, it was pushed back to 26 November. Although we weren&#146;t so sure it was a goer, given that the website <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2009/10/29/122752/97/hotels/Mandarin_Oriental_Barcelona_Will_Now_Open_on_November_26th">wasn&#146;t taking rezzies</a> until 15 December. <p>But hallelujah! We just called the hotel and spoke to a delightful man who told us that it is indeed opening Thursday, although plebs like us would not be welcome &#150; it&#146;s a private inauguration and opening do. Guests juliab 2009-11-23T10:19:26-05:00 Search HotelChatter string http://www.hotelchatter.com/search/