HotelChatter

What's interesting to note is how Marriott and Schrager entered this partnership. Peter Sanders of the WSJ writes that Bill himself ventured on down to the Gramercy Park Hotel while it was still under construction and liked what he saw.

After the place opened, Bill said he felt more comfortable in this boutique hotel than others he had stayed at. He liked how the bar was separate from the lobby and the private rooftop club. He especially liked how it felt warm and friendly and the use of colors.

Guess we must be the 75-year-old here and not Bill, since we called the place a scary gothic sex castle, not to mention it was drafty and we forgot our cardigan!

So far, there are no real specifics on what these hotels will be like. Sanders reports that Schrager won't simply rip-off the hotels that he created while at Morgans Hotel Group and that he will not focus so much on a look, but rather the "feel" of it all, whatever that means. Straight from the Marriott press release, Schrager says:

People today are sophisticated and they understand good design, quality, originality and commitment to excellence. They will not accept something derivative and they want the ethos and soul of a hotel to be authentic and have character.

Hard to believe this kind of hotel will operate under a Marriott umbrella huh?