Today, the GBTA Foundation released its latest quarterly U.S. business travel forecast, slightly downgrading our expectations from the previous quarter. Uncertainty around the upcoming presidential election is among the factors influencing our more pessimistic outlook for U.S. business travel spending through 2017.
I'm not qualified to write about industry trends, but I can write about trends that I have observed at one of my client's properties, a very upscale resort located at a great destination, that has done as much as 70 percent group business.
Professors Chekitan Dev (Cornell), Pradeep Chintagunta (Chicago) and Yi-Lin Tsai (Delaware) prepared this article based on Professor Tsai's doctoral dissertation completed at the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business and share findings from the study, "What's in a Name? Assessing the Impact of Rebranding in the Hospitality Industry."
The most common question we hear from clients is, 'What's really negotiable in a franchise agreement?'. Franchisees are told by the brand that the franchise agreements are not negotiable, but then they hear that someone has been able to negotiate at least one or two contract terms. Potential franchisees don't want to waste time, but the contracts seem so one- sided, and they want to get as much substantive relief as they can.
When you think about Six Flags, Sea World or Cedar Fair, it is typically an outdoor experience during summer when kids are out of school. But now, major theme parks and amusement parks are going indoors --- where they can attract visitors 365 days a year and not worry about poor weather wiping out profits. Indoor theme parks are not new, but there is a surge of new development. The first large-scale indoor amusement park, Galaxyland, built in 1985, was a giant success with 400,000 sf of amusements and thrill rides inside West Edmonton Mall in Alberta, Canada --- combined with a 355-room hotel and a 217,000 sf indoor waterpark.
Box cutters, pressure cookers, shoes, and backpacks. Not considered to be sophisticated weapons or technologies but these are examples of the weapons used to temporarily halt entire economies, prevent travel, and terrify millions in regions where terrorism strikes.
Today, e-RFP channels are enabling meeting and event planners to flood the market with a tsunami of "leads" that has left hotels struggling to keep up with the demand, according to an article published in Business Travel News. "It's broken," said Hyatt Hotels Corporation senior Vice President of Sales, Jack Thorne. "The whole thing got out of control almost overnight with us."
It started back in 2005 when Royal Caribbean Cruise Line added rock climbing walls, mini-golf and ice-skating rinks to their cruise ships. In 2006, they launched the industry’s largest passenger ship, Freedom of the Seas, with an onboard surf simulator called a FlowRider and an H2O Zone aqua park. And the race began. In 2009, Carnival Cruise Line added an aqua park called WaterWorks to its Ecstasy Cruise Ship at Galveston TX and its Dream Cruise Ship at Port Canaveral FL. Last December, RCCI launched its newest big ship, Oasis of the Seas, with an H2O Zone and two FlowRiders.
Extended-stay hotels are demonstrating resilience in a recession and continue to attract developer interest in the US – but the biggest opportunities are elsewhere, says MARK SKINNER, Partner in the Atlanta-based HIGHLAND GROUP. The demand side of the equation: Demand for extended-stay hotels started to fall in the fourth quarter of 2008 and the decline accelerated into 2009. Demand declined 3.6 % for the first half of 2009 compared to the same period in 2008. However, this compares favorably to the corresponding 8 % overall decline in hotel demand.
It’s hard to believe the North American members of Best Western International have agreed to allow the brand to adopt designators that will reflect the offerings of BWI properties. The issue had been met with resistance for so long that I didn’t think it would ever see the light of day.
West Virginia—You might be surprised when you walk into the SpringHill Suites Ashburn. No wall-length front desk. Soft lighting, lots of textures to check out. The revamp of Marriott International’s select-service, all-suite brand is eye-catching indeed.
This week’s news that Carlson Hotels Worldwide is setting up a tiering system for its Radisson brand is a sign that some “normalcy” might be returning to the global hotel industry. The fact that a franchising company is asking its franchisees to pony up cash for refurbishments with the idea of moving its brand up a level shows that at least one company believes the industry has hit bottom. It will take at least US$8,000 per room to upgrade a standard Radisson Green property’s guestroom softgoods to the Radisson Blu designation. That’s not chump change, but the early reaction from owners is many are ready to make the commitment.
Every two years HVS evaluates the fees charged by hotel franchise companies in the United States. The purpose of this analysis is to provide a comparative review of various brands based on applicable franchise fees. The selection of an appropriate franchise affiliation affects a property's ability to compete in the local market, generate profits, achieve a certain image or market orientation and benefit from referral business.
With a record level of membership, an increasingly noteworthy presence in Washington and continued sway in the franchising community, the Asian American Hotel Owners Association is happy to be celebrating its 20th anniversary. But it isn’t about to rest on its laurels, AAHOA leaders said during the association’s annual conference and trade show last week at the Gaylord National Hotel and Convention Center. “As we look back over the past 20 years, we have a lot to celebrate,” said Tarun Patel, incoming chairman. “But we must not become complacent.”
The pervasive economic distress that characterizes the U.S. today has led to what will be an unprecedented decline in U.S. hotel performance. According to the latest national forecast by PKF Hospitality Research (PKF-HR), Revenue per Available Room (RevPAR) will fall 13.7 percent in 2009, the largest one-year drop experienced by U.S. hotels since the firm began compiling data in 1936. This decrease in room revenues will likely result in a profit decline of 30.1 percent this year. In this depressed operating environment where room demand is waning and travelers and corporations are tightening their purse strings, expense control has become ever more crucial. However, while savvy managers tend to keep a close check on their operating expenditures, one expense item that is not typically on management’s radar screen is property taxes.
A few weeks ago, a call arrived from the Langham hotel (formerly the Ritz-Carlton in Pasadena). It was the manager of a hip hop singer whose name, like that of all hip hop singers, was unfamiliar. He explained that his client felt a sore throat coming on and wanted a shot of cortisone. I receive those requests now and then; singers think it helps. Ear-nose-throat specialists theorize that cortisone’s anti-inflammatory action relieves hoarse vocal cords, but I’m skeptical, especially if it’s given just a few hours before the show. Cortisone takes at least a day to work. I quoted $250 which is my price for driving the twenty miles to the Langham, and he agreed. Those are delightful calls; I drive a long way, give a shot, collect money, and drive back. Sometimes hotel doctoring is easy. The manager added that the concert took place the following day, and he’d phone when the singer was ready.
As years passed and my reputation grew, I acquired a source of patients I never knew existed: foreign travel insurance services. They had names like Universal Assistance, Assistcard, AXA Assistance, Europ-Assist, Usa Med, Mondiale Assistance. Aware of America's insanely expensive medical care, few foreigners (and no Japanese) arrive without medical insurance. Some foreign carriers resemble ours -- meaning they're infuriating to deal with. They require policy holders to pay the doctor then apply for reimbursement once they return home. This gives the carrier a chance to save money by denying payment on the grounds of incorrect information on the reimbursement form. I received many pleading letters from former patients who enclosed cryptic documents in an effort to pry money from their policies. Western European carriers preferred this method.