Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) announced today that a Hyatt affiliate has entered into an agreement for a Hyatt Place hotel in Manatí, Puerto Rico with Island Hospitality Partners, LLC, a joint venture of PRISA Group and McConnell Valdes Consulting. Island Hospitality is also the owner of Hyatt Place Bayamón Hotel & El Tropical Casino, which is currently under construction and is expected to open in 2014.
Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) announced today that a Hyatt affiliate has signed a management agreement with an affiliate of Island Hospitality Partners, LLC for Hyatt Place Bayamón and El Tropical Casino. It will be the first Hyatt-branded select service hotel in Puerto Rico and, upon opening, will mark the return of Hyatt-branded hotels to Puerto Rico after a nine year absence.
The 16th Annual Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Investment Conference (CHTIC) is geared to emphasize the need for public and private sector partnerships in order to maximize investment opportunities in the Caribbean tourism industry. CHTIC is scheduled for April 24-26, 2012 at the Sheraton Puerto Rico Hotel & Casino in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
At the Isla Verde Beach Resort in San Juan, Tracy, as the new Director of Sales and Marketing, will create and oversee the hotel’s annual business and marketing plans, coordinate sales activities throughout the resort, work to maximize hotel revenue and expand corporate accounts, research the competition, and develop marketing and sales campaigns. Tracy has spent most of her hospitality career with Marriott International, managing their ExecuStay brand in Texas, increasing business in the Hispanic market, and utilizing social media networks to increase revenue. Previously serving as both a Sales Director and General Manager, Tracy brings a unique combination of experiences in both corporate and leisure travel to this leadership position.
Prior to his position at Copamarina, Ortiz has spent the last 11 years as general manager at properties throughout the Caribbean, including at the Sonesta Maho Beach Resort and Casino in St. Maarten and Cuisinart Resort and Spa in Anguilla. Over the past 30 years, Ortiz has succeeded in roles ranging from front office manager to operations manager, to resident manager. He has been fully engrained in all aspects of hotel management and operations throughout his career. Ortiz graduated from Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration, Puerto Rico campus, with a degree in hotel administration.
W Retreat & Spa-Vieques Island, the Caribbean's ultimate destination escape, announces the appointment of Francisco Blanch as Director of Sales & Marketing for Starwood Hotel & Resorts Caribbean & Florida Metro Markets. Located eight miles off the southeast coast of Puerto Rico, W Vieques will be one of the 13 hotel properties Blanch will focus on within the South Florida and Caribbean cluster. Blanch brings more than 20 years of sales and marketing experience as he joins Starwood from his previous role at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach. There he oversaw leisure sales for the more than 1,500-room resort. Blanch has also worked with other international hotel brands including Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, Westin, Allied Tours and ACC Tours/AccessUSA. Blanch was previously a member of the Starwood team from 2006-2008. During that time, he worked on pre-opening projects in the Dominican Republic, as well as on the Hurricane Katrina task force for the two W properties and the Sheraton in New Orleans. He was also a member of the Caribbean Leisure Cluster during that tenure.
The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C. and Dorado Beach Resort announce the grand return of Dorado Beach – one of the Caribbean's most celebrated destinations – with the introduction of Dorado Beach, a Ritz-Carlton Reserve. More than 50 years ago, Laurance S. Rockefeller introduced the world to the 'luxury island resort' when he opened his eco-friendly RockResorts, including Dorado Beach in Puerto Rico. Today, we are pleased to announce that the exquisite Ritz-Carlton Reserve, a 115-key oceanfront hotel and residences, will be the centerpiece of the renovation of the Dorado Beach Resort set to open in December 2012.
Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, LLC a subsidiary of Wyndham Worldwide Corporation (NYSE:WYN), today welcomed its first Wyndham Garden® property in Puerto Rico, the 107-room Wyndham Garden at Palmas del Mar in Humacao, expanding its Caribbean portfolio of hotels. The hotel opens as the second Wyndham® property on the island, joining Rio Mar Beach Resort & Spa, A Wyndham Grand® Resort in Rio Grande.
An expert in launching luxury resorts in the Caribbean, Napier transitions from the Viceroy Anguilla with more than a decade of experience in hotel sales. His four year tenure as Director of Sales & Marketing at the Viceroy furthered his expertise in directing and implementing sales and marketing campaigns and generating brand awareness. Napier was responsible for building the department from the pre-opening period and became instrumental to the budding success of the $501 million hotel property. His efforts helped push the Viceroy to be recognized by prestigious groups such as Virtuoso and Fine Hotels & Resorts and find its place onto noteworthy lists including Conde Nast Traveler’s Hot List and Travel + Leisure World’s Best Hotels To Watch in 2010.
Williams, who brings more than 30 years of hospitality management experience to his new role, is responsible for the operation of the 500-acre tropical resort including oversight and management of the 750-member staff, golf facilities, spa, casino, food and beverage outlets, rooms, sales and marketing.
Michael Herrmann, regional director of operations for IHG Caribbean and general manager at the InterContinental San Juan Resort & Casino, announced the appointments of Jackie Raccuglia and Lissette Carlo as director of e-commerce and field marketing and account director of meetings for the InterContinental San Juan and the Holiday Inn Resorts in Aruba and Jamaica, respectively.
Garcia most recently served as general manager, Harvard Hotel & Club of New York.
No stranger to the hotel and resort sales sector, Garcia most recently served as director of sales and marketing for Gran Meliá Golf Resort Puerto Rico, where she implemented a new sales structure and the repositioning of the resort. Garcia previously headed sales for Fairmont Mayakoba in Mexico, InterContinental Resorts in Puerto Rico as well as marketing for Tishman Hotels in Puerto Rico. Furthermore, Garcia served as vice president of corporate marketing for Pan-American Life Insurance based in New Orleans. During her tenure with the multi-national financial services company, Garcia directed brand management, marketing, conference planning and communications, becoming the first Latin American woman to be named an executive of the corporation. Garcia was also named one of the top sales executives in the nation for EZ Communications radio stations and is past president of the Advertising Club of New Orleans. She graduated from Colegio del Espiritu Santo in San Juan, Puerto Rico and Marquette University in Milwaukee.
Sa has enjoyed a long and successful career within the InterContinental family, having held positions at the InterContinental New Orleans as well as the InterContinental Rio de Janeiro. Sa earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Hotel Management and Restaurant Administration at the Universidad de Caxias do Sul in Brazil. Sa brings with him years of experience providing world renowned first class service of InterContinental Hotels and Resorts, while also having worked in Puerto Rico for several years he understands exactly how to make every meeting a successful one.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT) is gearing up for the November opening of The St. Regis Bahia Beach, Puerto Rico, the island’s first luxury project since 1997. Underscoring the recovery in luxury hospitality, the $172 million resort is nearly sold out for the December holidays. This month, Starwood President and CEO Frits van Paasschen met with Puerto Rico Governor Luis Fortuño, as well as owners and developers, to discuss future Starwood development in this key Caribbean market.
W Hotels Worldwide, the hotel category buster and industry innovator, has unveiled W Retreat & Spa - Vieques Island, the W brand’s 37th hotel globally and its first retreat within North America. Owned by REIG CAPITAL, through its affiliate Vieques Hotel Partners, W Vieques is located only eight miles off the southeast coast of Puerto Rico and opens as the second W Retreat in the world, following the successful opening of W Retreat & Spa – Maldives in 2006. As W Hotels continues its transformation into a global powerhouse, on track to expand its portfolio to more than 50 hotels by the end of 2011, W is slated to open nine new hotels this year, including two retreat properties in Bali and Koh Samui, Thailand.
D’Amico comes to Rio Mar from the Reno-Sparks Convention & Visitors Authority in Nevada, where he served as vice president of convention sales for four years. Prior to that, he worked as area director of sales and marketing for Alabama's PCH Hotels and Resorts and led sales and marketing efforts for The Adam's Mark Hotel in Dallas, where he exceeded revenue goals by 180%. D'Amico's additional experience includes managing sales for multiple New Orleans properties as well as the city's Ernest Morial Convention Center. He is a member of several industry organizations, including the American Society of Association Executives, Meeting Planners International, Society of Government Meeting Planners, Professional Conference Meeting Planners and the Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI).
Chin brings a wealth of experience and is results-oriented with 23 years of experience in sales and marketing, mostly in the hospitality industry. Prior to his appointment he was Director of Sales & Marketing for two years in the pre-opening phase of the newly opened 500-room Sheraton Puerto Rico Convention Center Hotel & Casino. Chin is no stranger to the InterContinental San Juan; he held the position of Director of Sales & Marketing from 2002-2007. Prior to working at the InterContinental San Juan, Chin held the position of Director of Sales at the former Westin Rio Mar Beach Resort & Country Club in Rio Grande. He also worked as Director of Sales at the former Wyndham Old San Juan Hotel & Casino, former Crowne Plaza Hotel & Casino in Isla Verde and the Sonesta Hotel Beach Club & Casino in Aruba. Chin speaks fluent English, Spanish, Dutch, Papiamento, Chinese and Portuguese. He graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of South Florida.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT) – the hotel industry’s most global company – today announces it will double its presence in Puerto Rico in the next year with the opening of the island’s first W and St. Regis hotels and its second Sheraton.
Michael Herrmann has been appointed General Manager at the InterContinental San Juan Resort & Casino, a AAA 4-Diamond Resort in Isla Verde, and Regional Director of Operations in the Caribbean for InterContinental Hotel Group’s (IHG) Latin America-Caribbean Division. Herrmann replaced Sharon Kilmartin at the InterContinental San Juan, who was promoted to Regional Director of Operations for the 189-room InterContinental Stephen F. Austin and the 485-room InterContinental Houston Hotels. Prior to his appointment he was Director of Operations for IHG Southwest Asia Division, responsible for all managed and franchised hotels in India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh, including hotels under construction or in pre-opening stage. The IHG Southwest Asia portfolio consisted of four InterContinental, three Crowne Plaza and six Holiday Inn hotels as well as 31 new management contracts for hotels under development, construction or in pre-opening phase. Previous positions within the company included Regional Director of Operations in Indochina and Bangladesh and General Manager at the InterContinental Bangkok and Holiday Inn Bangkok in Thailand. He also served as Regional Director of Operations in the Philippines, Thailand and Cambodia and was General Manager at the Hotel InterContinental Manila in the Philippines.