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Tags: Hotel Parties / Beverly Hills Hotels / Hotel News / Recession Hotels / → All Tags

Down Drinks and Land a Job at The Crescent's 'Pink Slip Party'

Where: 403 North Crescent Drive [map], Beverly Hills, CA, United States, 90210

Leave it to Beverly Hills' Crescent Hotel to try and drum up business — and new jobs for partygoers — by hosting a "Pink Slip Party" on the first Tuesday of each month. Apparently sipping $5 pink martinis and shopping your resume is the hip version of unemployment, spinning depression into succession as only the west coast can.

Since the parties on the hotel's patio began in early February, recruiters have been brought together with motivated jobseekers over cocktails and half-priced appetizers, leading to some success stories already and many more in the works. It's an affront to the formality of a typical application and interview process, and rightly so as times like these mean more creativity and enthusiasm will get you ahead of the pack and perhaps right into that precious new job, after only a cheap drink.

If hanging out in a hotel in Beverly Hills sounds like an awesome alternative to sitting at home and scrolling through Craigslist, then start updating your resume; the next Pink Slip party is Tuesday, April 7.

[Photo: Crescent Hotel]

Tags: Beijing Hotels / Hotel News / Recession Hotels / Olympics Hotels / → All Tags

Beijing Hotels Suffer in Olympic-Sized Rut

If you're intrigued by all of the crazy vacation and airfare deals to Beijing of late, then rest assured that they won't be going away anytime soon as the city struggles with a dearth of tourism despite last summer's Olympics. Combine the low visitor numbers with Beijing's glut of newly-opened luxury hotels with high nightly rates, and it seems that they've got a case of the Dubai disease--whereby the recession hits new development hard enough to stabilize room rates at a more affordable level.

Although since it's only been a few months of low occupancy, don't expect to roll up into Beijing's Park Hyatt for $150 a night quite yet; they still have their pride. This is quickly waning, however, as the LA Times points out that 126 new hotels opened last year and added 29,000 rooms, bringing the city's total of starred hotels to over 800, with more than 130,000 rooms. That's a lot of space, considering that the Olympics are over and business travel is way down.

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Tags: Hotel Deals / Hotels.com / Recession Hotels / → All Tags

Hotels.com's 'Luxury For Less' Sale is Recession-Friendly

The recession is bad for business, or is it? What we mean is, travel discounts have successfully got us booking nights more than usual, but where the individual traveler gains, the actual hotels continue to suffer. An example of one such recession-driven sale on hotels comes straight from Hotels.com, whose "Luxury for Less" campaign is touting plush hotel rooms for nightly prices ranging from $89 to $180.

Comfortable hotel rooms in big cities are very welcome when under $300, but we're just not sure if Hotels.com's offerings could be considered "luxury." A few of their featured properties--The Belden-Stratford in Chicago, Caesars Palace in Las Vegas and Hilton Union Square in San Francisco--are all very nice, but we would hardly put them on the same level as a Park Hyatt or Four Seasons.

In any case, this sale will do well simply because a recession gets travelers to focusing more on the mid-luxe properties instead of the crazy 5-star Park Hyatts of the world. And for under $300, we'll totally take it.

[Photo: The Commonwealth Hotel, Boston]

Tags: Laid-Off Hotels / Budget Hotels / Detroit Hotels / Recession Hotels / → All Tags

Detroit Always Misses Out on the Fun

Where: 1000 River Place [map], Detroit, MI, United States, 48207

NOTE: Weather conditions in Detroit do not currently look like this.

Before you ask "whoa, why are you recommending a hotel in, of all places, Detroit?," let us all take a moment to reflect on the amount of blue-collar workers over the last few months who have slowly trickled from their well-paying jobs right into their couch cushions.

For the laid-off, a trip to Miami or London to forget about your troubles is exactly what the doctor ordered, but even these jaunts are expensive for someone with no income. This is where Detroit comes in, offering a fresh start to those who dare relocate to the Motor City. Before taking the plunge toward a new artist studio or sweet warehouse loft, we suggest camping out at the Omni Hotel at River Place, where the rooms begin at $106 and health club use is thrown in.

An added bonus to staying at any hotel in Detroit is its proximity to the casinos of Windsor, Ontario. Place your last $5 on red, spin, and slowly work your way into the black with the help of lady luck. This way, you can get the cha-ching of Vegas without shelling out for Celine Dion and at the same time, perhaps develop a new life plan in a city that desperately needs a dose of the creative class.

[Photo via: Omni at The River Place]

Tags: Hotel Amenities / Hotel Services / Hotel News / Recession Hotels / → All Tags

Some Hotels Are Giving Free Stuff; Some Are Not

This article from Florida Today mentions how many hotels are starting to pull back on the complimetary stuff that they usually offer to guests. For instance, the toiletries you have grown to love may be diminished in numbers when you check-in (one bar of soap, not two or shampoo but no conditioner.) And your copy of the ubiquitous USA Today might not be at your feet when you open your door in the morning.

"We are cutting back on little things that the guests may miss, but I think they will understand why we have to do this," said Jim Ridenour, general manager of the Residence Inn Melbourne and Courtyard Melbourne West, both part of the Marriott chain.

Earlier this month, both hotels stopped stocking rooms with lotion and shower caps. They are available by request. And coffee is now offered in the lobby only in the morning and late afternoon, rather than 24 hours a day.

The article goes on to list some of the freebies and services that other hotels are cutting out in the area. But this might not be true for the entire hotel industry.

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