For the second year in a row, Ibis was rewarded for the dynamic growth of its hotel infrastructure in Europe at the 18th Global Lodging Forum where it received the Development Trophy. At the gala evening event of the Global Lodging Forum, organized in the rooms of the Bristol Hotel in Paris, the Accor Group, through its "megabrand" Ibis was distinguished once again for the breadth of its development in Europe.
Avec 25 années d'expérience dans le management hôtelier, Christophe Mercier prend la direction de l'hôtel W Paris Opéra. Il a ainsi pour ambition de renforcer le positionnement 5 étoiles de l'établissement, avec notamment l'inauguration d'une nouvelle salle de réunion, le redéploiement des suites, ou encore l'ouverture d'un nouveau restaurant. Christophe Mercier a intégré le groupe Starwood Hotels & Resorts en 1991 en tant que responsable commercial des conférences et banquets au Prince de Galles. Sa carrière s'est par la suite tournée vers l'international dans des destinations comme San Francisco, Hawaï ou Venise. Avant de devenir directeur général du W Paris Opéra, Christophe Mercier était Resident Manager de l’hôtel Danieli de Venise.
January was not a good month for the French hotel industry, as RevPAR declined. Although business did not fall dramatically, RevPAR stagnated at best, and dropped by almost 5% at worst. Never a good month for French hotels, occupancy and average rates are often low in January – a situation not helped by the current economic climate. All the same, this is the third year in a row that January's performances have dropped in comparison to the previous year (1). In short, the decline in January 2014 – although moderate – only serves to prolong a difficult situation. Rather worryingly, Parisian hotels also posted a drop in RevPAR. Although the Luxury segment managed to increase rooms revenue by +2.7%, this remained an exception.
Pricing is naturally a major concern for hotel customers, and thus hotel professionals. But concretely speaking, what strategies are being implemented? Hospitality On addresses French hoteliers’ current practices in France.
Old England did a successful publicity stunt. London is strutting about on the radio waves and in the gazettes boasting first place as world tourism capital with 16 million international visitors, ahead of Paris, Bangkok and New York. TYPO3SEARCH_begin CONTENT ELEMENT, uid:72857/text [begin] Text: [begin]
Karl Lagerfeld has been commissioned to design two suites for Hôtel de Crillon, which is currently closed until 2015 for a complete restoration. Lagerfeld will bring his discerning eye, his expert knowledge of the finest craftsmanship and his philosophy of reviving history with an edge to this Parisian landmark, which was originally built in 1758.
Hilton Worldwide has reached an agreement which will see it rebrand the historic Concorde Opéra hotel under its Hilton Hotels & Resorts brand in late 2014.
Paris—December 19, 2013—FastBooking, the world's leading provider of digital marketing and technology solutions to increase hotel direct online reservations, announces the signing of a long-term contract to provide Pershing Hall hotel with GDS services to optimize high-end corporate accounts and top-tier leisure business.
A typical grassroots industry, greeting customers 24/ 7 in its establishments, the hotel industry has felt the need to gradually centralize support functions as hotel networks expand. While it is desirable to take advantage of economies of scale and to have a global vision to develop national and international strategies, there is a risk of falling out of touch with local market realities and disempowering hotel management. TYPO3SEARCH_begin CONTENT ELEMENT, uid:71895/text [begin] Header: [begin] Header: [end] Text: [begin]
Shangri-La Hotel, Paris announces the arrival of Stefan W. Bollhalder as general manager. With 35 years devoted to hospitality, Mr. Bollhalder's career illustrates a life of service in the luxury industry.
The newest and most exciting Palace hotel in Paris has just launched its very own Film Club. Every Sunday evening, hotel guests and visitors alike are invited to the hotel's private cinema theatre to attend a deluxe screening of great cinema classics – such as 'Goldfinger', 'Casino', 'West Side Story' or 'Grease'. Complete with comfortable leather seats and state-of-the-art equipment including 3D, this 99-seat cinema is the cultural jewel of the hotel. It was recently voted as "one of the top private movie theatres in the world" by American Express' Departures Magazine. It is also the only cinema theatre in the world where you can enjoy the most moreish of movie snacks: caramelised pop-corn by Pierre Hermé, the 'Picasso of Pastry'. The perfect idea for a romantic date or friends outing – and a great way to finish the weekend off in style.
Rosewood Hotels & Resorts® has been appointed to manage the legendary Hôtel de Crillon in Paris. Rosewood is widely regarded as a leading ultra-luxury hotel company whose portfolio includes both contemporary classics and historic properties such as Rosewood London and The Carlyle, the quintessential New York hotel. Hôtel de Crillon is currently closed while it undergoes a complete restoration lasting two years and will reopen in 2015.
The French hotel industry experienced a difficult month in October, with rooms revenue generally down. While certain destinations managed to resist (regional hotel activity remained mostly stable, for instance), many cities saw a drop in trading. These included Paris, where hotel occupancy has been crumbling over the past few months. The capital's hotels are thus faced with an additional pressure. However, the high levels of occupancy in Paris do give the city's hoteliers the means to maintain ambitious pricing policies.
In a message from its communication agency to various publications, Booking.com denies being a greedy distributor who takes advantage of weak hoteliers in order to impose its own conditions. It attempts to restore a better image by rejecting 11 ideas. However, in doing so, it recognizes some practices alleged against it and avoids sensitive issues. The exercise deserves to be supplemented by answers to some additional questions....
This isn’t the first time that online travel agencies (OTAs) like Expedia and Bookings.com have been in hot water. Only last year a lawsuit was launched in the US accusing Expedia, Starwood Hotels and InterContinental Hotel Group of price fixing. This time, it’s the French-based Union de Métiers et des Industries de l’Hôtellerie (UMIH) who have flagged the situation to the European competition watchdog Autorités de la Concurrence.
While the Peninsula Paris might be slowly revealing its Beaux Arts façade on Avenue Kléber, a hop and a skip down the Champs Élysées, two other Parisian luxury hotels are still very much off in the land of dreams. Hotel Ritz, on terribly chic Place Vendôme, is coming up to the midway point of its two-year plus closure, or as the French put it so much more eloquently, “vers une nouvelle legende”. If possible, the building is even more obscured from prying eyes than it was last time we walked by, earlier this year.
Accor is capitalizing on new digital usage trends to boost the efficiency of its sales force with an innovative, decidedly "Web 2.0" tool, designed in partnership with Salesforce.com. Known as ANAIS (Accor New Application for Integrated Sales), the tool is used by the Group's 700 salespersons across the world and provides them with a 360° overview of the Group's strategic accounts, thus giving them a better understanding of their B-to-B customers.
Pegasus Solutions hosted hoteliers at Google's Paris location on Monday for their first joint World of Distribution seminar. The event provided a forum for representatives from Pegasus, Google, and key Parisian hotel companies to deliberate on the industry's current and developing distribution needs.
The Board of Directors of Accor that convened on August 27, 2013, chaired by Philippe Citerne, decided to appoint Sébastien Bazin as Chairman and CEO of Accor. To take on this new role, Sébastien Bazin has ended all his duties at Colony Capital, which he had been heading since 1997. Philippe Citerne has been appointed as Vice-Chairman of Accor's Board of Directors.
Bloomberg takes a look inside the exclusive and historic Hotel de Paris in Monaco. Famous guests included Cary Grant, Michael Jackson and Nelson Mandela. We look inside their wine cellar, one of the largest and oldest in the world. (Source: Bloomberg)