Conde Nast's Portfolio magazine which just started publishing last summer has easily picked up the slack where Business Week, Fortune and Forbes have left off. Each issue includes meaty, informative business articles, rather than a picture on the front page, that leads to a one page three question interview. I'm not bitter.
Their Seat 2B column, just posted to their website today, contains some great tips about traveling:
On why you should tip the housekeeper everyday:
...leave your tip every day, not at the end of your stay, because the housekeeper may change from day to day. How much to tip? I never leave less than $5 a day...
If staying at a luxury hotel (this one will probably not work at a Motel 6):
...introduce yourself around, especially to the general manager. If you intend to be a regular, let him know. Give him your business card and write him a thank-you note after your stay. When you're headed to the next property, call and ask him whom to contact. He'll do the work for you and alert the next hotel's G.M...
And for people like my parents who insist on calling hotels directly for reservations:
..Time has passed it by. Most major hotel chains now work off of a centralized database of rates. In fact, many properties don't even have an on-site reservations department anymore...
And last but not least - is the hotel you want overbooked?
...ask if an "out of service" room is available. That's industry jargon and it means you're willing to accept a room that has been temporarily taken out of general inventory due to a small flaw that needs repair.
Ever wonder how the guy next to you gets champagne on the house when you've been downgraded to the broom closet? Getting hotel upgrades and perks isn't rocket science--in fact it's generally pretty intuitive-- but we're not sure most travelers take full advantage of what's available. We caught up with Becky Veith, travel agent extraordinaire, to see what she knew about workin' a hotel for perks.
A video ad for the online travel agency "What A Hotel" recently piqued our curiosity. (Confession: We saw it on the celebrity-gossip website A Socialite's Life.) The site is run by Lorraine Travel, a Coral Gables-based travel agency. The video ad features a voice-over fit for a movie trailer. Said voice-over extols the benefits of booking participating luxury hotels and resorts through the "What A Hotel" website. So what luxury hotels does this include? And can you really get some deals?
We have spies all over the hotel industry who like to send various miscellaneous tips our way. Some of these are post-worthy, others are not much more than one sentence tid-bits. So here's the latest batch of whispers through the hotel grapevine.
The St. Regis Hotel in Washington, D.C. has been closed since last summer for extensive renovations but is expected to open this November.
Thompson Hotels, in addition to opening a Beverly Hills property and two more downtown Manhattan hotels, is also headed to Toronto. Maybe they will have better opening luck in Canada.
The nightclub Cain at The Cove Atlantis had a soft opening on April 20th but the official opening happens next week.
We have spies all over the hotel industry who like to send various miscellaneous tips our way. Some of these are post-worthy, others are not much more than one sentence tid-bits. So here's the latest batch of whispers through the hotel grapevine.
Sanctuary in Times Square New York has not started construction yet although March was supposed to be the first month. Apparently, the developer has switched architects.
Philippe Starck will redo the Le Meurice, the oldest palace hotel in Paris. This might be the last deal he closed before he entered into a 15-year exclusive contract with the new SLS chain from Sam Nazarian.
Cabo Azul Resort & Spa will open in September with a 5-star look done by interior designer, Dodd Mitchell who recently renovated the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel. The resort will feature a 5-story open-air wedding chapel, a tri-level infinity pool, a Yin and Yang spa and cabanas on the beach.
We have spies all over the hotel industry who like to send various miscellaneous tips our way. Some of these are post-worthy, others are not much more than one sentence tid-bits. So here's the latest batch of whispers through the hotel grapevine.
· Several tipsters have pointed us in the way of a Miami-area blog that reported Nicky O South Beach might be coming back from the dead. Honestly, we cannot go through this again.
· The first phase of renovations at the Desert Springs JW Marriott are done and include an atrium lobby, a 60-foot sushi bar and an area for wine and cigar tastings. The spa is set for a 2007 opening.
· In case you missed it, an inside source reports that when the cast of The Hills visited the W Westwood Los Angeles they actually ate a full-course meal, not just dessert so blame the MTV editing department.
· We said the The Las Vegas Hilton is crapping out but geeks still admire it for their Star Trek experience. Should they just turn it into the Star Trek Hotel & Casino or what?
We have spies all over the hotel industry who like to send various miscellaneous tips our way. Some of these are post-worthy, others are not much more than one sentence tid-bits. So here's the latest batch of whispers through the hotel grapevine.
· Brangelina living in New Orleans has sparked a real estate boom and the Marriott and Renaissance New Orleans Hotels are offering guests a relocation package complete with guided house tours, maps and a Big Easy Property concierge.
· Manhattan's Broadway Inn bites the dust as developers Mort Zuckerman and Related build a skyscraper. This was one of the last clean and affordable hotels in the area, says our tipster.
· Sheraton Chicago Hotel & Towers are offering valet parking for only a penny from March 29 to April 7 as a way of celebrating its 15th anniversary.
We have spies all over the hotel industry who like to send various miscellaneous tips our way. Some of these are post-worthy, others are not much more than one sentence tid-bits. So here's the latest batch of whispers through the hotel grapevine.
· It's no secret that Nicky O South Beach is having problems. But we're hearing chatter in SoBe that it may never happen. There is a God afterall.
· The Ritz-Carlton San Francisco hosts a kid-friendly Teddy Bear Tea every December but gets sold out in August! We suggest booking now.
· The Westin St. John is offering the anti-Mancation. It's a "Solo-cation for Her" where women have three nights to themselves with private services like cabanas, time at the spa and even a snorkeling excursion. The cost is steep at $8,385.
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by AndrewC
