HotelChatter

Miami Hotel Mambo / Budget Hotels / Four Points By Sheraton / Hotel Deals / → All Tags

How To Save On South Beach Hotels: Go To Mid-Beach Instead

Where: 4343 Collins Avenue [map], Miami Beach, FL, United States, 33140

Ah, South Beach. Home to some of the prettiest hotels in the country--but also some of the pokiest rooms, most expensive rates, and of course a constant stream of restaurant hawkers on Ocean Drive.

How to get around this roadblock to an affordable weekend in Miami? Go to Mid-Beach instead.

During our recent stay at Soho Beach House, we were psyched to discover a string of cheaper alternatives lining the boardwalk right on our doorstep.

This is on Collins Avenue from around 40th to 43rd Street--SBH is near 43rd, and the Fontainebleau is at 44th Street. While we'd spent time inside the Fontainebleau before, we'd never walked the Mid-Beach boardwalk. Now we have, we're going to tell anyone looking for a bigger room at a better rate, with a more laidback beach and pool scene to go Mid-Beach all the way.

more ›

Four Points By Sheraton / Four Points Hotels / Airline Loyalty Programs / Southwest Airlines / Hotel News / → All Tags

Free WiFi, Beer and Southwest Credits Can All Be Had at Four Points by Sheraton

Southwest Airlines dropped some big news today with their announcement of new routes out of Newark Airport in 2011 but us hotel geeks are rather excited about Southwest's new partnership with Four Points by Sheraton.

Previously, we've dug Four Points for their reasonable prices, free WiFi, localized beer selections and even the apple pie scents that once wafted through the lobbies (It's been replaced with an outdoorsy scent.)

But now when you stay at a Four Points hotel you will earn one Southwest Rapid Rewards credit per stay.

more ›

Hotel Openings / Hotel Delays / Aloft Hotels / Westin Hotels / W Hotels / Four Points By Sheraton / Starwood Hotels / → All Tags

This Week in Hotel Delays :: Starwood Hotels Not Immune to Delays

Where: United States

We always enjoy, and well, it drives us crazy at times too, watching hotel opening dates slowly but surely get pushed back. Some hotel operators are infamous for it, and some manage to keep it on the DL.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts is one of the companies that try to keep it on the DL but since some of their locations have such high visibility, it's impossible to not notice. After the jump, we run down some of the good and the bad in the Starwood portfolio as it pertains to hotel openings and delays.

more ›

Chris Elliott / Hotel Hell / Starwood Hotels / Four Points By Sheraton / → All Tags

Sheraton Can't Be Bothered With Your Erroneous Bill Or Your Silly MSNBC Friend

Where: 5115 Hopyard Road [map], Pleasanton, CA, United States, 94588

Our buddy Chris Elliott is a columnist at MSNBC and also has his own site at Elliott.org. Most of the time he acts as a mediator for travel disputes between customers who have been wronged one way or another by airlines, car rental companies, airlines, hotels, airlines, online booking sites, oh yeah, and the occasional complaint about an airline.

We travel a lot too - so naturally we keep an eye on his site, but we have to say -- most things he writes about doesn't really surprise us, since people do dumb things and some companies are even dumber. Particularly airlines.

Until this week's post about a customer (Mike Black) who reserved and then canceled a room at the Four Points by Sheraton Pleasanton in CA and was assured by the hotel that there would be no charges for the room or cancellation.

more ›

Four Points by Sheraton / Starwood Hotels / Hotel News / Manhattan Hotels / Hotel Openings / Hotel Opening Rates / → All Tags

SoHo Gets A Four Points, It May Cost You All Your Starwood Gold Points

Where: 66 Charlton St. [map], New York, ny, United States, 10013

Finally! We've been waiting for the Four Points by Sheraton SoHo Village for years now -- we first heard news of the property way back in 2004 -- and now the hotel has finally opened its doors at 66 Charlton, between Varick and Hudson Street.

This 150-room hotel is the second to open up in Manhattan (Four Points by Sheraton Manhattan Chelsea was the first) and definitely adds some much-needed affordable rooms to the NYC market.

more ›

Hotel Swag / Four Points by Sheraton / Sheraton Hotels / → All Tags

Hotel Swag: Four Points and Their Mysterious Apple Peeler

The Four Points by Sheraton chain has been in our good books ever since they appointed a Chief Beer Officer, but they're teetering on heading over to the dark side after we discovered some of the odd (and probably useless) stuff they're trying to sell at their online store.

We get it about the sheets and towels and stuff, and even the fact that they sell a bunch of different pies (we'll take Mississippi Mud, thanks) is something  we can live with.

But in a very limited section of their shop called "Uncomplicated" they are selling a rather odd-looking apple peeler. For a start, we don't believe it's uncomplicated (is this thing slicing and peeling at the same time? What if we just want it peeled? How the heck do we attach the apple?), and second, we don't believe anybody really needs it. And definitely not from a hotel shop.

[Photo: Four Points Store]

Chief Beer Officer / Four Points by Sheraton / Scott Kerkmans / Hotel News / → All Tags

Sweet, Dude :: Four Points by Sheraton Appoints First Ever Best Brews Intern

When Four Points by Sheraton's Chief Beer Officer Scott Kerkmans put out a call for the first-ever Best Brews Intern in March, frat boys' ears all over the country perked up. Suddenly beer was a potential career option, and 2,000 applications poured in from hopefuls of all sorts.

And now the lucky recipient of the Sweetest Internship for Dudes Ever has been selected. Home brewer Dan Suarez of Brooklyn was the named the sweetest of all sweet bros:

In keeping with Four Points' commitment to spreading the gospel of life's Simple PleasuresSM, Dan will help develop in-hotel beer "happy hours" for Four Points hotels, work closely with local breweries and conduct beer trend research. He will also help promote Four Points Best Brews' program at happy hours and on bar stools across the country.

Okay, fine. We admit we're a bit jealous. But we send all our best to Dan and Scott. This looks like the beginning of a beautiful Bromance...

P.S. Scott Kerkmans is lookin' good these days despite holding a position that requires drinking beer all day. Not too long ago, he still looked like a frat boy himself. Now, is that hair gel we spy?

[Photo: Diane Bondareff/Four Points by Sheraton]