Stanley Turkel is a recognized authority and consultant in the hotel industry. He specializes in asset management, hotel franchising and litigation support services. Prior to forming his consulting firm, Turkel was the Product Line Manager for Hotel and Motel Operations at the International Telephone & Telegraph Corp. overseeing the Sheraton Corporation of America. Earlier, he was the General Manager of the Summit Hotel and the Drake Hotel and Resident Manager of the Americana of New York. Turkel serves on the Board of Advisors and lectures at the NYU Tisch Center for Hospitality, Tourism and Sports Management. Turkel is one of the most widely-published authors in the hospitality field. He brings many talents and accomplishments including his broad-based experience, his informed knowledge, his frequent appearances as guest speaker and his sterling reputation for integrity and honesty.
Congratulations to Lodging Hospitality Editor Ed Watkins: At the recent International Hotel, Motel & Restaurant Show, Ed Watkins received the Spartan Hospitality Business Champion Award from The School of Hospitality Business at Michigan State University. Ed has worked at Lodging Hospitality since 1974 and as editor since 1980. What a record! Thousands of sharp-edged, well-written columns about...
Stanley Turkel, MHS, ISHC | Monday 5 December 2011
Hats off to the Asian American Hotel Owners Association for the threat to sever its relationship with Choice Hotels International because of Choice's persistent, self-defeating anti-franchisee positions. Choice has consistently failed to recognize that their franchisees are the heart and soul of their business. It's no surprise to me that AAHOA finally blew the whistle and said "No More".
Stanley Turkel, MHS, ISHC | Thursday 6 October 2011
1. Impertinent Questions Still in Search of Pertinent Answers | I wrote the following questions in some of my earliest "Nobody Asked Me, But…" columns in the period from 1990-2000. So far, no pertinent answers have been forthcoming: When will hotel decorators provide a bedside light that will allow me to read in bed?...
Stanley Turkel, MHS, ISHC | Monday 19 September 2011
•AAHOA and InnLink announced that they will launch a customized online travel company (mybestrate.com) similar to Hotels.com, Expedia and Orbitz to facilitate online booking of rooms in almost 100,000 properties across the United States. This new online reservation system will include both AAHOA member and non-member properties and will be available to anyone with internet access
Did you take notice that the living hotel legend John Q. Hammons, 91, is suffering from serious heart and lung problems. John Q. has been on a unique and singular track for most his life and, if you don’t know who he is, you’re missing one of the greatest hoteliers/developer of our time.
Stanley Turkel, MHS, ISHC | Thursday 18 November 2010
Almost 100 Asian American hotel owners held an emergency meeting in Atlanta in late August 2010 to discuss strategy for addressing the financial crisis being created by the lending and foreclosure practices of large multi-state banks. The session was convened at the urging of former AAHOA chairman Mukesh “Mike” Patel along with several leading hoteliers and community bankers. According to Patel, ...
Stanley Turkel, MHS, ISHC | Wednesday 6 October 2010
My wife and I recently took a three-week automobile vacation through the spectacular mountains and valleys of the state of Pennsylvania. We deliberately stayed at budget/economy motor inns so that I could compare the facilities and service. How tolerant my wife was to agree with this arrangement for the sake of my research. Our driving route took us from Queens, NY (our home) through New Jersey a...
Stanley Turkel, MHS, ISHC | Thursday 12 August 2010
David Kong, president and CEO of Best Western International reported on April 19, 2010 that BW will separate its properties into Best Western, Best Western Plus and Best Western Premier beginning in February 2011. This long-overdue action will bring Premier to the United States after nearly a decade in Europe and Asia where it has been synonymous with four-star hotel quality. U.S. owners of the...
Can Airlines Learn From Hotels? While hotels have added amenities (plasma TV’s, IPod connections, more comfortable beds, wireless Internet, free breakfast), most airlines have reduced amenities (free baggage checking, hot meals, free movies, free pillows, free carry-on bags, fuel surcharge). And now, the worst idea ever proposed by an airline: The Irish airline Ryanair is considering charging pas...
Stanley Turkel, MHS, ISHC | Thursday 15 April 2010
The Plaza and the Pierre | I recently visited two restored hotels at Grand Army Plaza in New York. The contrast could not have been greater between the Plaza and the Pierre Hotels: The Plaza Hotel, once labeled the greatest hotel in the U.S., no longer qualifies for that designation. After a 2-year conversion to a condominium hotel with 50 private residences, 181 condo hotel rooms and 282 t...
Stanley Turkel, MHS, ISHC | Tuesday 9 February 2010
