We always enjoy, and well, it drives us crazy at times too, watching hotel opening dates slowly but surely get pushed back. Some hotel operators are infamous for it, and some manage to keep it on the DL.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts is one of the companies that try to keep it on the DL but since some of their locations have such high visibility, it's impossible to not notice. After the jump, we run down some of the good and the bad in the Starwood portfolio as it pertains to hotel openings and delays. ]]> AndrewC 2008-10-09T11:54:30-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2008/10/3/12910/7911 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/admin/conceptualmapfeedback.jpg" class="imgborder"><br><i>Conceptual Map of Customer Feedback on TripAdvisor, Expedia and HotelChatter -- no, we don't really know how to read it either.</i> <p>Have you stayed at a <b><a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/tag/w%20hotels">W Hotel</a></b> recently? Did you think the bathroom was a wee bit too small for your tastes, but kept quiet about it because you worried you were just too high-maintenance with your high expectations of ample counterspace and, like, sufficient room to move around? Or worse, were you worried that sitting on the toilet in a teensy closet was the trendy norm nowadays? <p>Yeah, no. It's <i>not</i> what all the cool kids are doing. <p>Turns out, <i>lots</i> of people find those W bathrooms a wee bit too cramped and dark. <p><a Jenna 2008-10-03T12:10:47-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2008/10/2/14137/6305 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/admin/eow_deals2.jpg" class="imgborder"><br><b>W Hotel Chicago City Center Insider Discounts</b><br><b><a href="http://specialoffers.starwoodhotels.com/w_chicago/so.htm?PS=PS_aa_Central_Google_w_city_center_043008_NAD_FM">15-20% Off Room Rates</a></b><p>If you're planning to check out Chicago in the fall or winter (gorgeous -- and a wee bit cold, depending on when you visit, but gorgeous nonetheless), check out the <b><a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/W+Chicago+City+Center/local/466">W Hotel City Center</a></b> if you think you may be staying a while. <p>It's kinda hidden on the hotel's website, so here's the scoop: during select days through the end of the year, you can receive 15% off. Stay 4 nights, and score 20% off. <p>The valid dates are actually not too shabby at all: <p>&#183; October 1-24, 29-31<br> <p>&#183; November 1-9, 12-29<br> <p>&#183; December 5-30 <p>Ah, it's oh-so-nice to be able to relay a discount that Jenna 2008-10-02T16:25:50-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2008/9/29/10633/8816 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/admin/minneapolis_w_2resize.jpg" class="imgborder"><p> Last week, <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/W+Minneapolis/local/1304"><b>W Minneapolis - The Foshay</b></a> opened its doors, with a <a href="http://blogs.citypages.com/ctg/2008/09/photos_from_the.php">big party</a>, of course. Champagne flowed, celebrities (like Molly Sims) abounded, and hot waitresses carried... a coffin?!<p> The party featured a faux funeral procession with ladies in minis pallbearing a coffin filled with top-shelf vodka. We can't figure out why on God's green earth the hotel's promoters decided on this odd performance piece, but can only assume it has something to do with a misdirected attempt to be ironically cool and shocking. <p>Further, the hotel's "living room" (lobby) is filled with custom-made pleather chairs. And it calls its bathrooms "water closets" to add a cherry on the pretension sundae. Though we have to ced138 2008-09-29T12:01:49-05:00 Search HotelChatter string http://www.hotelchatter.com/search/