HotelChatter

Bed Bugs / Hotel Safety / Hotel Health / EcoSmart / Hotel News / → All Tags

EcoSmart Bed Bug Repellent Won't Let the Bed Bugs Bite

Bed bugs are a hotel guest's worst nightmare. But there's not much you can do about them since they are so hard to see and it's only when you've returned home from a trip that the telltale red bumps start to invade your skin.

And not even avoiding skanky budget hotels will protect you as luxury hotels have been known to be infested too.

But now there's a product out there that claims it can keep bed bugs from getting into your suitcase EcoSmart Bed Bug Travel Repellent uses botanical ingredients to "erect a barrier around [a] suitcase and other areas so bed bugs, if they're lurking can’t hitch a ride home."

And if you're staying in hotel rooms, you can spray EcoSmart around the headboard of the bed and the mattress area to keep the bed bugs from biting in your sleep. You can even spray EcoSmart in your home if you think the bed bugs may have followed you there.

more ›

Hotel Fitness / Hotel Workouts / Hotel Health / Hotel Rooftop Pools / Kimpton Hotels / San Diego Hotels / → All Tags

Would You Power Walk, Pedal or Pilates Your Way Through San Diego?

Where: 435 Sixth Ave. [map], San Diego, CA, United States, 92101

If you are the type who hates the monotony of the same old workout and needs a little variety in your exercise routine, the Hotel Solamar in San Diego has options for you. The Gaslamp Quarter hotel just launched a wellness program called Mind Your P's: Pilates, Power Walks and Pedal Pushers. It's a new initiative for the hotel to encourage guests to get active and live like a local.

You can do your downward dog at poolside Pilates classes. You'll get to breathe in that fresh SoCal air on its fourth-floor rooftop deck while a local instructor helps you work on your core during the mat sessions. Classes cost $10 a person and are held Saturdays from 10 to 11 a.m.

more ›

Hotel Deals / Hotel Fitness / Hotel Workouts / Hotel Health / Manhattan Hotels / New York City Hotels / Fitness Hotels / → All Tags

Push Up to Push Down Your Room Rate At Affinia Dumont

Where: 150 East 34th Street [map], New York, NY, United States, 10016

Just the kind of place we fancy doing some push ups

There are two types of travelers: the ones who stick to routine while they’re away, hitting up the gym and eating the way they would at home, and the ones who let good intentions slide, fill up on burgers and hail a cab as exercise, because they’re on a jolly. Both, however, can benefit from a new deal that the fitness-freaky Affinia Dumont in New York is offering.

With the Push Up, Push Down Your Rate deal, you can save up to $40 on your stay by performing push ups at check in. Yes, push ups at check in. Remember to check out your modesty at the door.

The idea is simple: you book a room as normal, and, as you check in, staff will give you 30 seconds to perform as many push ups as you can (we’re not sure if there’ll be whistles and shouting, bootcamp style, but we’re crossing our fingers that there will). Each is worth a dollar, and they’ll accept a maximum of 40. The amount will then be deducted from your first night’s stay. Ta da! If you’re a lazy hotel guest, you can go and eat something greasy while feeling virtuous. If you’re an exerciser, it’ll act as a nice warm up.

more ›

Hotel Health / Spa Packages / Switzerland Hotels / Bad Ragaz Hotels / → All Tags

If You've Got the Cash, Bad Ragaz Hotels Will Whip You Into Shape

Where: Bernhard-Simon-Strasse, Bad Ragaz, Switzerland, 7310

Hands up who overdid it a little on Labor Day? Not just in the way of drinkz but food, too. You did? Then you might like to make your way over to Switzerland, where the Grand Resort Bad Ragaz--which has two hotels, the Grand Hotel Quellenhof & Spa Suites and the Grand Hotel Hof Ragaz--has just launched a new weight loss program.

The non-faddy name--it’s just called the Weight Loss Programme--should give you a clue that it’s more of a medical thing than an airy fairy celeb detox center. Run by doctors from their inhouse medical center, it lasts six days and kicks off with a “body analysis” which will scare you into losing weight by checking your bloods, nervous system, and even your spinal column, and pointing out the health risks you’re facing if you’re carrying a spare tire.

more ›

Hotel Health / Hotel Fitness / Hotel Spas / Tucson Hotels / Desert Retreats / Dr. Andrew Weil / → All Tags

Forget Liposuction! Just Take a Trip to The Miraval Resort

Where: 5000 E. Via Estancia Miraval [map], Tucson, AZ, United States, 85739

If you're going to follow Kim Kardashian's Twitter advice and steer clear of plastic surgery, the Miraval Arizona Resort & Spa offers another option. The resort is partnering with integrative medicine trailblazer Dr. Andrew Weil for a new health and wellness program.

So instead of doing lipo, Miraval will teach people about weight management and how take charge of their overall health in a program that will launch in August.

more ›

Hotel Fitness / Hotel Health / Fitness Hotels / Hotel Workouts / Mexico Hotels / → All Tags

Rancho La Puerta Will Give You a Dancer Workout with Bar Method Classes

Where: Carretera A Tijuana Km 5, Tecate, Mexico, 92046-3057

We've all heard of hotel yoga and Pilates classes, but Rancho La Puerta is stretching its usual exercise offerings. The Mexican health and fitness spa, located 45 minutes south of San Diego, is now offering bar method classes.

The workout-of-the-moment bar method revolves around a barre, the same one that ballerinas and dancers use for their warm-ups, for a series of exercises. It's supposed to help sculpt lean, firm muscles in your chest, upper arms and upper legs. That sure as heck beats the tedious treadmill.

more ›

Hotel Health / Paris Hotels / NYT Reviews / Detox Hotels / → All Tags

A Detox Hotel in Paris? Apparently so at The Hôtel Gabriel Paris Marais

Where: 25, Rue du Grand-Prieuré, Paris, France, France, 75011

Even if you binge on Cabernet Sauvignon and gorge too much on rich Camembert and Brie while in Paris, you won't have to abandon your resolution to get fit in '10. You can kick-start your plan at the Hôtel Gabriel Paris Marais, the City of Light's first detox hotel.

Don't worry, staying here won't be like an episode of Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew. Instead, the 40-room hotel takes a less invasive method of purging the toxins in your life—whether they be from stress, bad diet, sleeplessness or lack of exercise. The hotel focuses on creating a relaxing zen den where you can get some shut-eye.

more ›

Hotel Health / Wyndham Hotels / Hotel Freebies / Airport Hotels / → All Tags

Wyndham Hotels Does Not Want Your Flu Germs, Thank You Very Much

Had your flu shot yet? You never can tell who’s laden with germs. That’s why Wyndham Hotels is now handing out complimentary bottles of hand sanitizer to guests arriving at 10 of their airport hotels. But don’t worry, they won’t be spraying you with the stuff as you check in, just giving you a pocket-sized sanitizer from the Bath & Body Works PocketBac Deep Cleansing Hand Gel range.

In the words of Wyndham Hotels and Resorts president Jeff Wagoner:

"This is just one more way that Wyndham hotels care for guests as part of our ‘Be Well’ philosophy."

more ›

Hotel Fitness / Yoga / West Hollywood Hotels / Hotel Health / → All Tags

Free Poolside Yoga at the London West Hollywood

Where: 1020 San Vicente Blvd. [map], West Hollywood, CA, United States, 90069

Dennis Rodman may not be welcome at the London West Hollywood any more but yoga enthusiasts certainly are. Figuring guests might need to detox after a late night on the Sunset Strip, the hotel is now offering sunrise yoga and tai chi classes at the rooftop pool…because, um the downward-facing dog is exactly what you want to do when you’re hungover?

The classes are only offered on Saturday and Sunday mornings, and are free for guests, new age and otherwise. Just cough up your $199 per night room rate, slip on your juicy sweat pants, and grab your mat on the way to the roof to see which other guests had a naughty night out…or are limbering up for another one.

At the very least, you’ll get to enjoy the spectacular view of the city from the pool area between ayurvedic poses and chanting your mantras. And best of all, it's free. No $18 fees here.

Hotel Health / Hotel Sick / Tips / → All Tags

Illness on the Road: Tips From A Hotel Doctor

If you've been ill in a Los Angeles hotel and needed a doctor, the chances are high that the white-coat who came to see you was Dr. Mike Oppenheim.

He's been a hotel doctor since the 1980s and reckons he's made 15,000 hotel room visits. And advised thousands more over the phone.

He wrote a few tips for hotels recently that might just be useful for you, too, if you end up sick in a hotel room. Lots of hotels are using those agencies who take calls and then page a doctor who might turn up, eventually.

more ›

Berlin Hotels / Hotel Health / Ritz-Carlton Hotels / → All Tags

Get A Good Night's Sleep in Berlin

Where: Potsdamer Platz 3, Berlin, Germany, 10785

You read it here first that the Ritz-Carlton Berlin gets a big thumbs up for its comfortable beds, and now we can report on comedian Mo Rocca's first hand experience with the hotel's sleep clinic.

While it seems kinda odd to fly half-way around the world to work out how to sleep better, Mo recently tried out the weekend sleep clinic package that's supposed to teach you how to sleep more soundly (although we reckon we're pretty good at that already). According to Mo, the package includes several days of being "steamed, sloughed, kneaded, and glazed", and apparently his sleep profile meant he had to wear a "brain light" at night.

It is probably pretty easy to sleep well when you're being totally pampered; how that translates into a better sleep pattern once you get home isn't clear, but perhaps it involves a lot of return trips to the Ritz-Carlton's sleep clinic--could be just a case of very clever marketing.

[Photo: This Year's Love]

Related Stories:
· Check Out My Commie Hot Rod [News Bloggers]
· On the Eighth Day God Created the Ritz-Carlton Bed [HotelChatter]
· Berlin Hotel Reviews [HotelChatter]

Hotel Health / Heard Around / Hotel Fitness / Walt Disney World Hotels / Kimpton Hotels / → All Tags

Heard Around the Hotel World: The Healthy Edition

We've recently received a bunch of emails (thankfully not hate mail) that are about hotels announcing new health programs--some fitness and some life-saving heavy stuff.

So instead of our usual gossipy Heard Around the Hotel World, we thought we do a round-up of the good-for-you hotel news. You might need it after that BBQ session yesterday anyways.

MORE

more ›