http://www.hotelchatter.com/ Hotel Reviews, Hotel Ratings, Hotel Openings en-us Copyright 2008 - SFO Media 2012-02-14T08:36:59Z HotelChatter HotelChatter http://www.hotelchatter.com/images/hcwhite.jpg http://www.hotelchatter.com/tag/Ben%20Bethel http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2011/10/13/14533/854 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/1425/blucigsdisposable.jpg" class="top"><p> A couple of weeks ago, <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/tag/ben bethel"><b>Ben Bethel</b></a>, the owner of the <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Clarendon+Hotel+and+Suites/local/3738"><b>Clarendon Hotel</b></a> in Phoenix let us know that he would be <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2011/9/28/141744/539/hotels/The_Clarendon_Hotel_in_Phoenix_Will_Sell_E_Cigarettes_to_Guests_Looking_for_a_Fix">selling e-cigarettes to his smoking guests.</a> He told us: <blockquote><p>We're tired of charging guests $250 for smoking charges, tired of deep-cleaning guest rooms after they're smoked in, and tired of chasing after guests who are smoking in our pool area and rooftop bar. So, we're going to start encouraging guests to use E-Cigarettes, to the point that I'm even going to sell them at the front desk.</blockquote></p><p>Not long after our story went up, Bethel had partnered up with <a href="http://www.blucigs.com/"><b>blucigs</b></a> to sell guests their brand of e-cigarettes for $10 each. Now juliana 2011-10-13T14:53:03-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2011/9/28/141744/539 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/1425/starter_kit_img.jpg" class="top"><p> <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Clarendon+Hotel+and+Suites/local/3738"><b>The Clarendon Hotel</b></a> in Phoenix is taking a novel approach to dealing with rogue smokers in their non-smoking rooms by selling them <b>electronic cigarettes to puff on.</b> <p> Owner <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/tag/ben bethel"><b>Ben Bethel</b></a> tells HotelChatter doing this will not only make the guests feel comfortable but also save him the hassle of trying to recoup the smoking fines. He says: <blockquote><p>We're tired of charging guests $250 for smoking charges, tired of deep-cleaning guest rooms after they're smoked in, and tired of chasing after guests who are smoking in our pool area and rooftop bar. <p>So, we're going to start encouraging guests to use E-Cigarettes, to the point that <b>I'm even going to sell them at the juliana 2011-09-28T14:32:17-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2008/10/30/93046/324 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/1425/wscottsresident.jpg" class="top"><p>Things are getting heated between the <b><a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/W+Scottsdale/local/1078">W Scottsdale</a></b> and its neighboring residents who are still pissed off that the hotel's outdoor bar keeps them awake at night. But that's not all they are mad about. Apparently, the hotel's partying guests are leaving trash in the 'hood too. From the <a href="http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/2008/10/30/20081030Wnoise1030.html">Arizona Republic</a>: <blockquote><p>Resident Jim Anderson said bass from the music creates a beat of thumps that shake the walls of his property. And when the party shuts down, he says, people trash the neighborhood. On a recent Monday afternoon, Anderson combed through the lawn outside his home, filling an empty Milwaukee's Best beer carton he found on the street with garbage "from the pigs this weekend." He juliana 2008-10-30T09:45:50-05:00 33.5022115 -111.92379 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2007/9/10/10413/3427 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/admin/clarendon_room2.jpg" class="imgborder"><p> After four years of operating as a 3-star hotel the Phoenix <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Clarendon+Hotel+and+Suites/ian/207184"><b>Clarendon</b></a> has announced not only its new membership in Luxe Worldwide Hotels, but its plan to obtain 4-star perfection. Looks like <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2006/9/21/104142/722/hotels/Hot+Hotelier+News%3A+New+Kid+on+the+Block+Ben+Bethel">Ben Bethel's plans</a> for the hotel are finally coming to fruition. <p> At the end of the month the Clarendon will up the ante by adding 50 new guest rooms and opening a casual Asian-fusion restaurant. In October they will unveil a new pool that will be a welcome oasis in the middle of the southwest desert and features multiple fountains, hand-laid mosaic and gold inlay. <p>By 2008 there will be new heating and cooling systems, granite showers and even an exclusive ultra-luxe jnaw 2007-09-11T09:11:13-05:00 33.491461 -112.07897 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2006/9/21/104142/722 <![CDATA[<p><img align="right" src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/admin/ben_bethel.jpg">There's a new hotelier on the scene in Arizona and unlike some hoteliers, he's not relying on Daddy to get himself started. But that also doesn't mean he's been slaving away in the hospitality industry either.<p>Ben Bethel has no real hotel experience. Instead he dropped out of the University of Arizona because he felt he could do more with his "natural skills" than an advertising degree.<p>So he bought the <a href="http://www.theclarendon.net"><b>Phoenix Clarendon Hotel + Suites</b></a> with two partners in 2004 and later transformed it from a crackden/streetwalker haven into a boutique hotel. <p>In a recent Q&amp;A interview with the Arizona Republic, Bethel dishes the detes on his job. Some choice quotes:<blockquote><p>&#183; I didn't know much about the hospitality juliana 2006-09-21T10:41:42-05:00 33.491461 -112.07897 Search HotelChatter string http://www.hotelchatter.com/search/