If there's one thing that Miami and hotel openings have in common it's that they both make you wait longer than you'd like. Especially when you need to get permits from City officials to open your doors.

Which is all to say: we're not surprised that Element Miami is still a few weeks away and not already open as we thought it might be by now.

The hotel's website is saying Opening February 16--but taking reservations from March 1. A rep for Element tells us it's safe to say it will be open in 'late February.' And the earliest night we could find a room is March 11, for $159 a night.

]]> MsRebecca 2012-02-10T09:00:21-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2012/1/26/16837/4005

It's been a while since we checked in on the hotel habits of the POTUS but yesterday we we were psyched to see that Barack Obama stayed at a hotel that we've actually stayed at before...twice!

When visiting Las Vegas on the campaign trail, Obama eschewed the hotel casinos on the Strip and instead took over the entire Element Las Vegas hotel in Summerlin, about 15 minutes from the Strip. 8newsnow.com reports:

Onlookers were curious as to why President Obama chose to stay farther away from the bright lights of the Las Vegas Strip. "This Element is earth friendly, and I think he's trying to promote that on his visit," Carol Bieganowski said.

]]> juliana 2012-01-27T12:16:47-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2012/1/5/114544/9553 <![CDATA[<p><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/1425/elementmiami_opening.jpg" class="top"><p> <i>Yes, the hotel news keeps a-coming</i>.<p>After several delays (about four), the <a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/hotel-reviews/Element+Miami/local/4949"><b>Element Miami</b></a> will open for real in a few short weeks. Just in time for all those winter storms which no doubt will leave travelers stranded at MIA! <p> While the date on the website says January 26, we couldn't actually book a room online until <b>February 1</b>. There we found rooms for <b>$169 a night</b> for 373-sq.ft. non-smoking room with a king bed. For a studio room with a full kitchen and about 100-sq.ft more space, that will cost you only $179 a night.<p> One-bedroom suites with even more space and a pull-out queen sofa are just $189 a night. And remember those room juliana 2012-01-05T12:00:02-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2011/7/26/84542/9756

It's slow season in Miami, so we were starting to get excited about a brand new hotel opening to cheer us up. But, well, what do you think happened? That's right--the hotel got pushed back. We're looking at you, Element Miami International Airport.

Apart from being a not-surprising-but-bummer-all-the-same moment, this news is a lesson in paying attention to the fine print. For while, the words "Opening December 8, 2011" run in big letters across the hotel's website, there is some more sobering news to be found when you click through to the announcements section.

]]> MsRebecca 2011-07-26T10:05:02-05:00 http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2011/5/20/13054/9281 <![CDATA[<P><img src="http://www.hotelchatter.com/files/6193/ramps1.jpg" class="top"> <P>Did you even think you'd find Fiddleheads on the menu at your urban hotel? Fiddleheads are the coiled leaves of a fern, and not only are they tasty but they are rare, with a short season that happens to be right now. Thanks to a new partnership between <b><a href="http://www.hotelchatter.com/story/2010/11/30/10638/037/hotels/Inside_the_Rest_of_the_Just_Opened_Element_Times_Square">The Element Hotel Times Square</a></b> and Vermont's <b>Holton Farms CSA</b>, more such local and organically grown produce will be on offer at the hotel soon. <P>CSAs are growing in popularity, especially in NYC where fresh produce is at a premium and farm-grown is desirable.<b> CSA stands for "community-supported agriculture,"</b> and it's essentially a subscription service. You send your money to the farm for a subscription, and they send JetSetCD 2011-05-20T16:44:20-05:00 Search HotelChatter string http://www.hotelchatter.com/search/