It must be nice to be Jennifer Aniston or John Mayer, whose days end inside a $1015-a-night Netherlands hotel room replete with the finest relaxation-enhancers Amsterdam has to offer...such as a view of the Amstel river, of course.
Splash news reports the two were bunking together at the ultra-posh Intercontinental Amstel last night. The historic hotel boasts mega-luxurious digs and unbelievable views (and lots of privacy) -- perfect for the undercover couple to unwind.
John is in Manchester today for his next gig. No word on whether or not Jen is gonna be in tow, but the paps are probably on the scene right now; we hope Mayer brought along some "relaxation assistance" from Amsterdam to help with the stress.
Think Kuwait and you may think of Desert Storm and burning oil fields. But did you know this little country is becoming a tourist destination?
It has islands with white sand beaches, coral reefs, archaeological sites, museums, horse-racing clubs, festivals, serious shopping, and an amusement park with a haunted castle.
A testament to the success of the country's long-range tourism plan, Staybridge Suites is partnering with Intercontinental Hotels Group to roll out two new hotels -- and this is just one example of the massive outcrop of hotels and hotel chains that are scheduled to open in Kuwait city.
Guess what? Next time you shoot a quick video of your hotel room and then send it into the vast expanses of the interwebs, you might score a free stay at that hotel! Also, next time you buy a lottery ticket you might win the lottery. But we digress.
According to USA Today, the video = free stay thing can happen:
Aaron Schwartz, an executive recruiter in Fairfax, Va., wanted a nice memento of his vacation in Aruba. Using his video camera, he filmed his stay at the Marriott Renaissance Ocean Suites last June -- shots of the beautiful beach, flamingos along the water. He uploaded the video to his MySpace page and YouTube.
He then received a call from the resort's general manager, who liked the video so much that he offered Schwartz a free seven-day stay."
So, turns out, hotels are watching your videos in an effort to monitor their online images (smart!) and even going as far as to reward amateur media-makers for helping their brands look pretty.
Seems more like "Hey, who cares?" Only 5 active users. (To be fair, the IHG Official Page has 176 "fans.")
At the page you gotta download the concept application to get started. So we did. A box with our Facebook friends came up first (yeah, we're all on Facebook), then another box with a bunch of reasons why we'd think to tell my friends to "get a room." Instead we thought about junior high. Among the reasons were:
·"It's fun to jump on the beds" ·"It's time for a pillow fight" · "Two words: mini-bar."
The one discussion topic made us chuckle. Bella in China wrote she was gonna try out the application. To which Greg in Atlanta wrote back, "Glad you like the concept. Spread the word."
Obviously Bella's no gossip. The discussion ended there. And get this. The page is rated 5 out of 5 stars. Hmm...who does that one reviewer works for?
What's sorta surprising is that the company's official website is pretty sophisticated with flash, some cool destination videos, even a Travel Advisory. So at Facebook, what on earth were they thinking?
Save the Las Colinas Mustangs!...From the hotel invasion!
Much like what developer Sam Chang is doing in New York--putting two or three hotel brands in one building--the Intercontinental Hotels brand is hoping to do the same thing in the master-planned community of Las Colinas in Irving, Texas, a sort of suburb close to Dallas.
Las Colinas has been a breeding ground as of late for these new types of boutique-y chain brands aimed at business travelers since the community is home to 2,000 companies and serves as the global HQs for a few Fortune 500 companies. Already, Las Colinas will be getting an Aloft and a NYLO.
The Hotel Indigo Las Colinas will feature design elements such as guestrooms with hardwood flooring and spa-inspired showers and amenities such as a fitness studio, hotel bar, a 24-hour business center and meeting space for business functions or special events. Complimentary high-speed wireless Internet access will be available throughout the hotel.
The Crowne Plaza Las Colinas will offer more than 8,000 square feet of meeting and banquet space and include a restaurant, lounge, business center and gift shop.
Both hotels will have separate entrances yet will share a fitness center and swimming pool. We're guessing there should be some rate differences as well but no word on what those will be. The hotels (hotel?) will open in 2010.
The New York Times knows that it's what's on the inside that counts. Which is why despite vehement dislike of the 32-story Intercontinental San Francisco's architectural attributes (our favorite: that its turquoise and glass make it look like "a deodorant stick"), the Times bestows the new hotel with a rave review. Writes Chris Colin:
"...[T]he view from the inside is quite different. The muted beige interiors are well proportioned and calming. The service is polished. And many of the hotel's 550 rooms offer spectacular views of the low-slung city."
Colin particularly enjoyed the hotel's "cozy" lounge, "airy" fitness center and "large and inviting" rooms with floor-to-ceiling windows. (He recommends paying more for a king bed superior to be guaranteed a room above the 12th floor, which apparently offers killer views of San Fran and all the way out to Oakland.)
Room rates start at $229, a pretty reasonable rate that will likely attract business travelers and shoppers alike, given the hotel's SoMa (South of Market Street) location, within walking distance of the financial district and "gobs of shopping," according to Colin.
So unless you're really shallow, sounds like this purported Ugly-Betty building may be worth checking out.
This year we went very in-depth with our Annual WiFi Report so that we could give you a better understanding of the hotel WiFi landscape in 2008.
But even we have to admit that's a lot of reading to do. And if you're in a hotel today paying by the hour or paying by the day or furiously trying to jump onto the free WiFi network outside the hotel's club level, then you probably don't have time to read every last word.
Hence the 2008 Hotel WiFi Chart was born. Here we take the five major U.S. hotel chains--Starwood, Marriott, Hilton, Intercontinental and Hyatt-- and round-up the internet options across all their brands. We're keeping it simple by only listing for you where the internet is free, where you pay and where it's free in the lobby.
Our suggestion for getting free internet at any of these places? Join the hotel loyalty program. If you're a frequent guest at one of these major chains, joining the loyalty program may earn you complimentary internet during your stays although it varies from program to program and property to property. So does begging the front desk to let you have internet for free.
Poison frontman and Rock of Love star Bret Michaels is performing at the Hard Rock Hotel in Orlando on May 29th for the hotel's Velvet Sessions. The cost of a chance to dance near the extension-wearing aging rocker? $50 and that includes specialty drinks from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. The concert starts in the hotel lobby at 8:30pm. [Orlando Sentinel]
· Speaking of Orlando, About.com just released a Disney World Resort Map. Prepare to do a lot of reading. [About.com] · Intercontinental Hotels might be lagging in the WiFi department but they are determined to stay green in the future. The hotel brand just unveiled its Innovation Hotel website which showcases sustainability of hotels. [LAT Daily Deal Blog] · MGM Mirage might be splitting their hotels and casinos into two separate divisions. [Online Casino Advisory] · The burgeoning Riviera Maya Hotel Scene in a nutshell. [Dallas Morning News]
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by Jenna
Like other hoteliers reaching out to a whole new Generation X, Y or Z of guests, 
