Tag: Marriott Hotels
View All TagsKentucky Derby Hotels / Louisvile Hotels / Marriott Hotels / Expedia / → All Tags
Have You Booked Your Room for the Kentucky Derby Yet?
We know, we know. It's not even Valentine's Day and we're already talking about booking hotels for Kentucky Derby but the truth is, even though the big race is not until May 4, it's probably harder to book a last-minute room for the Derby, especially if you want to be in town, than it is to book a last-minute hotel for the Super Bowl. So if you're interested in going, we say book now.
So, what are the hotel options like right now? We hit up Expedia during the Derby weekend (Thursday, May 3-Sunday, May 6) and found a few budgety hotels like Days Inn and Ramada for under $280 a night. You might be saying "Ouch" right now and you might not be thrilled about staying on the outskirts of town but those are actually doable rates for the Derby.
Looking at the four and five-star hotels, we see that they are all sold-out. At least on Expedia. They may have availability if you book with the hotel directly or if you work with a travel agent. (See our tips for Super Bowl.) There are a few three-star hotels left like the Hyatt Place Louisville for $499 and the Holiday Inn Louisville in North Clarksville for $429 a night. The Galt House is available but at $1,500 a night. Yikes!
Hotel News / Hotel Openings / Manhattan Hotels / Marriott Hotels / Edition Hotels / Public Hotels / Hotel Construction / King and Grove Hotels / → All Tags
From A Hotel Standpoint, New York Is Pretty Much Done With the Recession
New York, New York—so great they named it twice. But, hey, don't just take our word for it (we live here, so we're a little biased). Talk to all the hotel developers who are buying up hotels left and right. Because of them, New York City alone accounted for 20% of hotel transactions across the entire country in 2011, announced The Real Deal.
In some ways, we already knew this. Well. We didn't know the exact numbers ($3.5 billion in sales, to be exact), but we did know that there were some major hoteliers sniffing out the next NYC locations for their brands. At a glance: Public New York is on its way, Edition New York has already found a location, and two other Marriotts (a Courtyard and a Springhill Suites) will be popping up in Herald Square.
Further downtown, Andre Balazs' Standard empire is steadily expanding eastward. And let's not forget about King & Grove, who recently burst onto the scene with two well-established NYC properties firmly under their belt.
Bathroom Tuesdays / Hotel Bathrooms / Marriott Hotels / Brooklyn Hotels / Photo Gallery / → All Tags
If You've Got Time To Kill in Downtown Brooklyn, Go To the Bathroom At the Marriott
We don't know about you, but a hotel's public bathrooms are often the very first thing we check out. Chalk it up to a weak bladder. Whatever the circumstance, we often find it a telling precursor to the hotel experience that lies ahead of us.
Now, in this case, we simply had to use the bathroom, so we ducked into the mammoth 638-room Marriott Brooklyn Bridge, climbed the escalator, and cut straight through the red carpeted lobby. Since they're located near the conference rooms, these are sprawling bathrooms, designed to accommodate large groups of people at once.
Sure enough, we almost got lost inside while navigating the different nooks and tiled corridors. But because everything was so polished and pristine-looking, we didn't mind a bit! For more pics of our potty pilgrimage, see below!
Gay Hotels / Marriott Hotels / Hilton Hotels / Renaissance Hotels / Thompson Hotels / Hotel Parties / Palm Springs Hotels / → All Tags
Make New Friends At These 7 Gay-Friendly US Hotels
Maybe we got hit with the Valentine's Day bug a little early, but we're feeling extra-romantic this week. So we're channeling that energy into this list (as promised), of some of the country's gay-friendliest hotels and resorts. But don't worry—it's not all rose petals and glasses of champagne. Whether you want a DJ, a mountain view, or vintage patio furniture, we're pretty sure you'll find what you're looking for here.
Hilton Sedona, a 219-room resort located in northern Arizona's Red Rock country, was recently TAG-approved for its commitment to LGBT travelers. What's more, last September, it hosted the Sedona Pride on the Rocks Festival, which drew all sorts of fun-seeking folks from the entire Verde Valley region. And if the 2012 bash is anything like last year's, guests at the hotel can expect a private pool party, a drag show "Gay-La," and of course, the main festival itself, which takes place among the resort's three heated pools, two restaurants and 20,500 square feet of event space.
Rates start at $179
Hotel News / Edition Hotels / Ian Schrager / Marriott Hotels / Manhattan Hotels / London Hotels / Miami Hotels / → All Tags
To Secure The Future of 'Edition' Hotels, Marriott's Putting Its Money Where Its Mouth Is
Though we felt some faint ripples in the Edition pond back in October, it looks like things are moving along at a pretty steady clip. The WSJ is reporting that Marriott has invested $800 million of its own money into three of the five new Edition hotels it hopes to open over the next three years (Hmm, haven't we heard this one before?).
Those three properties include: the Berners hotel in London; the Seville Beach Resort in Miami; Abu Dhabi; Bangkok, and, of course, New York's Clock Tower (above). Consider Waikiki and Istanbul the "test drives" of the Edition brand. Now, it kind of comes down to a do-or-die situation. Either the five new hotels soar, or they sink fast. But with so much of its own money at stake, and Ian Schrager's reputation on the line, Marriott should certainly have the momentum it needs for lift-off.
Hotel News / Autograph Collection / Manhattan Hotels / Hotel Magazines / Hotel Renovations / Marriott Hotels / → All Tags
A New Autograph Collection Hotel Launches Today in NYC
That's right, The Algonquin is no longer New York's only Autograph Collection hotel. As of tonight at midnight, rooms at The Carlton, on Madison Avenue and E 29th St, will be bookable via the Autograph website, under the category of Boutique Chic.
The Rockwell Group, who has worked on other hotels like The Cosmopolitan, The Ames and Trump Soho, revealed that The Carlton is in fact housed in a former carpet showroom. And when renovations began, they discovered not only a Tiffany style glass dome on the mezzanine level, but also exquisite mosaic flooring, which had been—as luck would have it—preserved perfectly by the carpets themselves. Oh, the serendipity of interior design!
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New Year's Eve at Marriott Denver Tech Center Ends In Major Technology Fail
Of all the New Year's Eve parties that took place in hotels on Saturday night, this might be the most action-packed one we've heard about so far. Spread out across two neighboring hotels, the Hyatt Denver Tech Center's "White Rose Gala" and the Marriott Denver Tech Center's "Champagne Hotel" attracted thousands of midnight revelers. And for a while, it was smooth, champagne-fueled sailing.
Until midnight struck, and over 3,000 inebriated Marriott guests tried heading back to their rooms—only to discover they were all locked out! According to MSNBC, a computer error apparently crashed the hotel's entire key card database, and though pretty much everyone was drunk as a bicycle, and ready to collapse into their beds, they all had to wait until 3am to be let back into their rooms.
Photo Gallery / HotelChatter Reviews / Anantara Hotels / Marriott Hotels / Bangkok Hotels / Thailand Hotels / Hotel Renovations / Hotel News / → All Tags
Inside the Newest Anantara Hotel: The Anantara Riverside Bangkok
The hotel's Longtail Bar on its private dock
While Thailand was flooding these past few months, a hotel right on the river in Bangkok was busy renovating and changing brands. Luckily the new Anantara Riverside (formerly the Marriott Riverside) wasn't effected by the high waters and now that the country is drying off, they're ready to welcome the return glut of travelers.
Until the end of April 2012, they're offering rooms from 3,888 THB ($125 USD) per night; it's the Journey Begins package, which includes a room upgrade, breakfast, internet and discounts on the spa and further dining.
During a recent trip to Thailand at the very start of the flooding, we spent two nights at the Anantara Riverside and found that wasn't near sufficient to both explore Bangkok and enjoy the hotel's amenities. This is a place for a long weekend, a return visitor to Bangkok, or really anything more than a quickie of two days.
Hotel Renovations / Marriott Hotels / Anantara Hotels / Bangkok Hotels / Hotel News / Thailand Hotels / → All Tags
As Bangkok Dries Off, a Hotel Renovates and Relaunches
Check out that pool. Would you believe that it's just outside the very middle of the bustling metropolis that is Bangkok, Thailand? Now that the city is drying off after catastrophic flooding, it's time to head back and luckily there's a new hotel to make things interesting.
Well, actually it's an old hotel. But it's a new hotel too! You see, the Marriott Riverside Bangkok has been renovated, revamped and relaunched as the Anantara Riverside.
Hotel News / Marriott Hotels / Bill Marriott / → All Tags
Bill Marriott Steps Down As CEO, Remains A Hotel-Hopper For Life
We don't know if it was the stress of the recent Waikiki lawsuit, or simply the after-effects of running the largest hotel chain in the world, but Bill Marriott is stepping down as CEO of Marriott International Inc., after 60 years on the job.
The Washington Post has published a statement from the chain hotel king, who declared his optimism about the future of the company, as well as his hotel-hopping retirement plans. Not that he didn't manage to get around before. But his new post as Executive Chairman will allow, we're guessing, for a pretty flexible schedule.
And, for the second time this week, we're a little lot jealous of life at the top.
Hotel Lobbies / Hotel Snacks / Hotel Food / Marriott Hotels / Manhattan Hotels / Times Square Hotels / Hotel Amenities / Hotel Toys / Hotel Vending Machines / → All Tags
Instead of Casinos This Month, Try Your Luck At The Marriott Marquis Vending Machine
On a recent evening, we found ourselves in Times Square with some time to kill while waiting for a friend. Unable to think of something better to do, we headed straight for the huge eighth-floor lobby of the Marriott Marquis Times Square.
As it happened, we were also a little snackish, but didn't want to spoil our appetite for dinner (an extravagant feast awaited in K-town). So we hopped on over to the vending machines in search of something salty. Inserted the bill, pressed the button, watched the metal rings coil, and then—nothing. A pack of trail mix hung precariously from the tip of the dispenser. Sadness!
But just when we were about to give the whole machine a much-deserved headbutt, the mechanism sprang into action again to let fall not one, but two packs of trail mix. Score!
Hotel Openings / Mexico Hotels / Fairfield Inn / Marriott Hotels / Beach Hotels / → All Tags
Fairfield Inn Is Fairly Smitten With Mexico
Following up on last week's news that Marriott would be opening a new hotel in Haiti, plus expanding into Serbia, Fairfield Inn announced that it would be setting up a new property in Cabo San Lucas. And not only that: Fairfield's partnership with Mexican operator Pulso Hotelero has proved so successful that they plan to open another 35 Fairfields throughout Mexico.
For those who know the brand's "select-service" appeal (meaning no added frills like a restaurant, bar, or room service), this is good news for jet-setters on a budget.
Rooms at the new five-story Fairfield Los Cabos will start at just $99, and are located just a few minutes' walk from the Marina. Oh, and free wi-fi in all the public spaces. You're already planning your post-New Years getaway, aren't you?
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