Carolina Beach Hotels Deals|"Downtown Brooklyn Gets New Hip Hotels"

Source             :    usatoday.com
Category        :    Carolina Beach Hotels Deals
By                  :    Nancy Trejos
Posted By     :    Hotels Carolina Beach NC

Carolina Beach Hotels Deals

 Brooklyn's year-old Barclays Center has drawn the likes of Jay-Z and Barbra Streisand, the Brooklyn Nets and this year's MTV Video Music Awards. The arena is part of a larger complex called Atlantic Yards, which will soon be filled with residential, office and retail space. Throw in a thriving arts and cultural scene anchored by the Brooklyn Academy of Music, plus a dozen or so universities, and you've got a hotel developer's dream. "It's an underserved market," says Hung Luk, chief operating officer of the Lam Group, which has developed InterContinental Hotels Group's Hotel Indigo, officially opening today in downtown Brooklyn.

Brooklyn has become the hottest New York City outer borough in the last few years, but much of the activity has been concentrated in Williamsburg, a subway stop away from lower Manhattan. Now, development is spreading throughout the borough, making Brooklyn a primary destination rather than a second thought for travelers visiting New York City. For city residents, it can also be a more affordable place to live, with easy access to Manhattan."Hotel Indigo is just the latest in a series of new hotels exploding onto the Brooklyn scene, and it's easy to see why," says Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz. " Whether business or pleasure, Brooklyn is tops by any measure in offering memorable opportunities to guests, from shopping and dining to culture and the arts." Right now, there aren't enough hotels to house those guests, city officials and developers say. Gregory Atkins, project manager of a 200-room lifestyle hotel near the Barclays Center planned by Second Development Services, says Brooklyn has 4,000 hotel rooms for 2.6 million people. "Take your average Midwestern small city. How many hotel (rooms) do they have? They have more than Brooklyn," he says. "There's a tremendous market demand for Brooklyn alone."

From January 2011 through this June, 13 of the 53 hotels that opened in New York City were in Brooklyn, according to NYC & Company, the city's official marketing and tourism organization. Another eight are expected to open in Brooklyn by 2016. The New York Marriott at the Brooklyn Bridge in downtown Brooklyn, a large full-service hotel, had long dominated the borough's hotel market. Then Williamsburg landed two boutique hotels: the 72-room Wythe Hotel and the 64-room King & Grove Williamsburg. Now, developers are looking to other parts of Brooklyn that are as up-and-coming as Williamsburg once was, such as Bushwick and Sunset Park, where the 76-room Hotel BPM, named for the musical term "beats per minute," opened last year. That's partly because land is generally cheaper in Brooklyn, about 50% less than it would cost in Manhattan, says Scott Barone, president of Barone Management, which is planning a 204-room full-service hotel near the Barclays Center.

And, says Luk of the Lam Group, land in Manhattan is getting scarce. "There's only so much you can build in Manhattan," he says. New York City travelers are attracted to Brooklyn because visitors can often get rooms for less. The average daily rate this year through August is $167.96 in Brooklyn, vs. $261.29 in Manhattan, according to STR, a hotel research firm in Nashville. Bijal Panwala, owner of Hotel BPM Brooklyn, says it's not just about the money. "Our guests choose Brooklyn for Brooklyn rather than it being a cheaper option," he says.

In many ways, downtown Brooklyn has become the next frontier for hotel development in the borough. The neighborhood has 1,000 hotel rooms now, and another 500 on the way, says Tucker Reed, president of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership. The latest addition is the 128-room Hotel Indigo on Duffield Street, IHG's boutique brand, where rates range from $179 to $300.

The design of the hotel pays homage to the neighborhood's history as a haven for artists and intellectuals, says Mary Winslow, director of Americas brand management for IHG's Hotel Indigo brand. In the early 1940s, the nearby February House became a boarding house for writers, poets and performers such as burlesque dancer Gypsy Rose Lee, author Carson McCullers and poet W.H. Auden. Walk into the Indigo, and you think you're walking into an old vaudeville theater. In the lobby is a mural of a red velvet stage curtain and numbered seats. Next to a red velvet chair that guests can lounge on is a stage light.

Murals on hallway walls show theater steps. A second-floor fitness center has a picture of the legs of dancers covering one wall. Rooms have murals of stage curtains. Some have murals of chandeliers on their ceilings. The paintings and photographs hanging on the hallway walls were chosen by the Lam Group in collaboration with the Brooklyn Arts Council. "The murals, the colors, the food and beverage … it has to be rooted very specifically to the neighborhood story; otherwise, you feel like you're in Disney," Winslow says.

That neighborhood story will continue to evolve. In addition to the Barclays Center, there are other developments on the horizon, including the BRIC Arts Media House, an arts and media complex, and the Polonsky Shakespeare Center, the new home of the Theatre for a New Audience. "It provides visitors in the area with all sorts of things to do that weren't necessarily here a decade ago," Reed says. "These will only prove to drive up, in my opinion, occupancy rates and demand for rooms."

Source:usatoday.com/story/travel/hotels/2013/09/19/downtown-brooklyn-hotels-barclays-center-hotel-indigo/2830615/

Marriott Carolina Beach|"Ritz Carlton Plans To Open 20 New Hotels"

Source             :    skift.com
Category        :    Marriott Carolina Beach
By                  :     Ritz-Carlton
Posted By     :    Hotels Carolina Beach NC

Marriott Carolina Beach

The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company has announced plans to add 20 new hotels to its portfolio to bring the number to 100 hotels and resorts around the world by 2016. The expansion plans include capital cities and emerging tourist destinations, some of which will be debuts for the international hotel group. The Ritz Carlton has opened three new properties over the last 12 months – the Ritz-Carlton Abu Dhabi, UAE; Dorado Beach, a Ritz Carlton Reserve in Puerto Rico; and the Ritz Carlton Vienna in Austria. Additionally, five more hotels are scheduled to open in the last quarter of the year, including two new properties in China – The Ritz Carlton Chengdu, and The Ritz-Carlton, Tianjin. Other hotels scheduled to open are The Ritz Carlton, Almaty in Kazakhstand; The Ritz-Carlton, Aruba; and The Ritz-Carlton, Bangalore in India.

Ritz-Carlton president and chief operating officer Herve Humler said: “The robust pipeline of hotel projects indicates a continued strong demand for Ritz-Carlton products and services. We are delighted at the company’s continued positive growth. Across the globe, and especially in Asia and the Middle East, we will be the undisputed top-tier luxury hospitality brand by 2016.” The group will also be adding more residences to its portfolio, following strong demand for the serviced apartments offering by The Ritz-Carlton. “The growth of Residences by The Ritz-Carlton has been impressive. Affluent customers are choosing these lifestyle options because they know that their condominiums and estate homes will be managed in the same exceptional way as our hotels. Whether as a second or third home, or a primary residence, it is a great testimony to the affinity our customers have for The Ritz-Carlton,” said Humler.

2014 will mark more hotel and resort openings for the group in cities such as Kyoto, Japan; Nanjing, China; Rabat, Morocco; Cairo, Egypt; Manesar, India and Bali, Indonesia, followed by more openings in Cabo San Lucas; Oman, Muscat; Bali, Indonesia; Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam; Tunis, Tunisia and Haikou, China in 2015.

Source:skift.com/2013/09/17/ritz-carlton-plans-to-open-20-new-hotels-by-2016-focuses-on-asia-and-middle-east/

Hotels In Carolina|"Hawaii Hotels Reach Record Room Revenue"

Source             :    bizjournals.com
Category        :    Hotels In Carolina
By                  :     Janis L. Magin
Posted By     :    Hotels Carolina Beach NC

Hotels In Carolina

Higher average daily room rates helped push room revenue at Hawaii hotels to $336 million in July, a new record for any single month, despite a nearly 3 percentage-point decline in occupancy for the month, according to a monthly report by Hospitality Advisors LLC and Smith Travel Research. The statewide occupancy rate in July was 78.9 percent, which was 2.9 percentage points lower than the rate in July 2012, the report said. The statewide average daily room rate for the month, however, rose 11.8 percent to $241.63, which was also a new record for any single month and helped to offset the decline in occupancy to push revenue per available room, or RevPAR, to $190.65, which was 7.8 percent higher than the same month last year and a new high for the month of July. Occupancy was highest on Oahu, where 87.7 percent of hotels were full in July, but that was a decline of 3.9 percentage points from the 91.6 percent rate set in July 2012. Waikiki hotels followed a similar trend with an occupancy rate of 89.1 percent in July, which was 3 percentage points lower than the 92.1 percent rate during the same month last year. Despite that, the average daily room rate on Oahu rose 13.4 percent to $221.42, while RevPAR rose 8.5 percent to $194.19.

Source:bizjournals.com/pacific/blog/morning_call/2013/09/hawaii-hotels-reach-record-room.html

Hotels In Carolina|"Israeli Hotels Report Sukkot Vacancies"

Source             :    globes.co.il
Category        :    Hotels In Carolina
By                  :     Michal Raz
Posted By     :    Hotels Carolina Beach NC

Hotels In Carolina

If you have not yet made a reservation for the Sukkot holiday, and you want to do so in Israel, there are still quite a few offers available at hotels nationwide. Hotels that are not yet fully booked are offering deals, such as the third night for free or at a discount. Nonetheless, a family of four will still pay NIS 6,000 for 3-4 nights at a hotel. A review of eight hotels found that, in most cases, a reservation through a travel agency (including specialized websites) is cheaper than making a reservation directly at the hotel (through the hotel's website). However, customer club members who make reservations via the hotel website earn substantial discounts (including reductions on the membership fee).

On one hand, it seems that hotels are "desperate" to make deals because of the drop in incoming tourism and the strength of the shekel against the dollar, and are offering especially good deals for customer club members (including new members). On the other hand, travel agencies which have unsold packages are no less desperate. Bottom line, it is recommended to examine both channels for reservations, and do not hesitate to bargain over the price. An empty hotel room profits no-one. "The holiday and the school vacation created expectations of high occupancy rates at Israeli hotels, but it seems that Israelis prefer spending the holiday eve at home, and the hotel occupancy rate is not high, at an estimated 70%," says Eshet Tours manager Galit Zakkai, "The large number of discounts that hotels have been offering in the past week make vacations at the height of the tourist season relatively cheap."

Walla Tours CEO Ariel Atias says, "Demand this year is even higher, because talk of a possible attack on Syria caused some wholesalers offering package tours overseas to cancel or reduce flights. This resulted in a shortage of package tours to foreign destinations compared with demand. Eilat is still an available alternative, so I expect that it will be full over the first and second Sukkot holidays. Demand will naturally keep prices high." What has happened to prices compared with last year? Ophir Tours VP Yehuda Zafrani believes that prices are similar to last year. "Hotels in Israel have not raised prices, in view of lower than usual incoming tourism during this time of the year. The security situation in Syria has caused a slowdown in incoming tourism. As a result, hoteliers are focusing on Israeli consumers and are offering better prices. Prices this year are similar, and, in some cases, even lower than last year, which is good news because prices usually rise during the peak season," he says.

Source : globes.co.il/serveen/globes/docview.asp?did=1000879649&fid=1725

Oceanfront Hotels In Carolina|"Stamford Artist Inherits Hotel"

Source             :    stamfordadvocate.com
Category        :    Oceanfront Hotels In Carolina
By                  :    Eve Sullivan
Posted By     :    Hotels Carolina Beach NC

Oceanfront Hotels In Carolina

At his home in North Stamford, artist James Knowles is busy working on an aluminum sculpture for the marquee of his family's hotel in New York City. Knowles already created the base of the structure -- a set of aluminum pipes melded together in a unique shape -- and is now attaching separate pieces of aluminum. After placing the first couple pieces, Knowles said he hadn't planned where to put them or what the final outcome will look like. But, he said, it looked "rigid," and that's good. "They don't have a specific location in advance," he said. "But it comes up and it comes alive." Hustling back and forth from the pile of aluminum to the structure, Knowles continued placing aluminum pieces that he constructed earlier onto the base. They came in all different shapes and sizes, with some looking like an accordion.

Upon completion, Knowles stepped back for a moment to look at his masterpiece. "Come on, that's beautiful," he said. "Look at the complexity of it." The 69-year-old has been creating art for most of his career, while also running the Hotel Roger Smith on 47th Street at Lexington Avenue in New York City. He has joined his two interests together, turning the historic hotel into a showplace and meeting place for artists. "It's known in the city," he said. "It's a funky little hotel." On a recent day, Knowles was cutting elm trees in the backyard of his High Ridge Road home, which sits on nine acres of land. The wood from the trunks will not go to waste, as he uses a chainsaw to carve them into artwork. Knowles left the woods to discuss his family's history in Stamford and the chain of hotels they once owned. Heading toward an old barn which he uses as a workshop, Knowles said he and his wife purchased their home in the 1970s and raised a family there.

His father-in-law once owned a huge piece of property next door, stretching back to Trinity Pass, and also owned a hotel chain. He started with the Hotel Roger Smith in Stamford in 1929, then gradually bought out hotels in New York, until eventually acquiring 17 of them. Knowles graduated from Yale University and received a master's degree in fine art from the University of Pennsylvania, with the intention of being an artist. For many years, he focused on his sculptures, creating some for local churches, schools and businessmen. In 1987, his father-in-law died and Knowles took over the last remaining Hotel Roger Smith in Manhattan. The place was once called the Hotel Winthrop before being purchased by the Roger Smith Corp. in 1938, with plans to fill it with tourists for the 1939 World's Fair. These days, Knowles said the hotel -- which has about 130 rooms -- is booked every night and plays a part in the city's arts scene. He said he travels to the hotel almost every day and also works on his own artwork at home. Looking at a giant bronze bust sitting in the yard, he said the subject was a Jewish philanthropist who gave his money to Harvard Medical School. He said he made a statue for the man and one for himself, adding, "I don't think he particularly liked it."

Knowles showed several other pieces on the lawn before heading into his self-proclaimed "messy" workspace. Inside, chainsaws, hammers and other tools are strewn everywhere and various pieces of artwork can be found lying around. Picking up some of his work, Knowles said, "This stuff here is so lightweight that it intrigues me. They're aluminum tubes that we shape together." Sitting on a chair in the corner, he grabbed some small clay sculptures that he molded. Although the faces seem a little distorted, he said they really look like the subjects. Some small bronze sculptures were located overhead and on shelving around the barn. Knowles said he gets random visits to the workshop, sometimes by people who are driving by and notice his artwork on the lawn. He said he had one the day before.

Heading back outside, Knowles pointed out three replicas of pieces that are on display in public places. One is a giant bronze cross that's at Christ Church in Greenwich. The others are plaster pieces at the New Canaan Country Day School and New Canaan Presbyterian Church. Then, like a mad scientist, Knowles began working on the piece that will go over the marquee. He compared it to a piece of music, possibly by Mozart. Aside from the piece going on the marquee, Knowles said he usually doesn't show his own work at the hotel. "My stuff is around, but I'm not showing it much," he said. "I'm showing other people's stuff."

Source:stamfordadvocate.com/local/article/The-Dart-Stamford-artist-inherits-hotel-creates-4816796.php

Marriott Carolina Beach|"Westchester May Join Hotel Tax Lawsuit"

Source             :    lohud.com
Category        :    Marriott Carolina Beach
By                  :    lohud
Posted By     :    Hotels Carolina Beach NC

Marriott Carolina Beach

Westchester County is considering whether to join a class action that alleges multiple online travel companies are not remitting all the hotel taxes they collect to local governments. The lawsuit, filed two years ago by Nassau County, claims Expedia, Priceline.com, Orbitz and similar businesses charge hotel taxes based on discounted rates they buy rooms for, not the higher rates they charge their consumers. “While Defendants charge and collect Hotel Taxes from occupants based on the marked up room rates, they only remit to the Class members, if anything, tax amounts based on the lower, negotiated room rates,” the filing said. “Defendants unlawfully pocket the difference.” The lawsuit, which was designated in April as a class action, comes at a time when local governments are struggling to find new revenues. All local governments that have imposed hotel taxes at any time since 1995 are plaintiffs unless they opt out by Oct. 11. Eighty local governments in New York have hotel taxes, the state Comptroller’s Office said.

Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino is recommending the county not opt out of the lawsuit. The county has a 3 percent hotel tax and collected $5.3 million in 2012. The Board of Legislators is reviewing his recommendation. “These companies are hitting taxpayers and visitors with a double whammy,” county spokeswoman Diana Costello said. “They collect a higher tax from consumers, and then put the profits in their own pockets instead of passing along what is due to Westchester.” Rye Brook, White Plains, New Rochelle and the city of Rye also have 3 percent hotel taxes. Rye Brook estimates it will collect $630,000 in taxes this year from its two hotels, the Hilton Westchester and Doral Arrowwood, said Chris Bradbury, village administrator. Rockland County is opting out because officials “figured it wasn’t going to benefit us in any real way,” said Stephen DeGroat, county finance commissioner. The county implemented a 3 percent hotel tax in April 2012, which yields about $1 million a year. Most people who stay in hotels and motels in Rockland book directly with hotels, he said.

Source : lohud.com/article/20130912/NEWS02/309120079/Westchester-may-join-hotel-tax-lawsuit

Marriott Carolina Beach|"Indonesian Drug Mule Arrested After Hotel Room Raid"

Source             :    thestar.com.my
Category        :    Marriott Carolina Beach
By                  :    Johor Baru
Posted By     :    Hotels Carolina Beach NC

Marriott Carolina Beach

Police have arrested a 41-year-old Indonesian drug mule who carried 3.1kg of syabu in a special compartment in his luggage while travelling from India. The substance with a street value of RM621,600 was seized when police raided a hotel room in Senai, Kulaijaya, at about 6pm yesterday. Johor deputy police chief Deputy Comm Datuk Ismail Yatim said that the suspect, believed to be working for an international drug ring, had brought in the drugs by hiding them in a special compartment in his luggage via the Senai International Airport. “We put the luggage under an airport scanner and the drugs could not be detected. We believe that the syndicate may have used this tactic many times before to avoid detection,” he said at a press conference here.

He said that the drugs could cater for some 15,540 addicts, adding that the suspect had tested negative for drugs and would be remanded until next Tuesday to assist in their investigations. In a separate case, DCP Ismail said that police had arrested six suspects including a 16-year-old girl who were part of a syndicate involved in at least three break-ins and eight robberies in the Johor Baru North area. He said that during the group’s latest spree, three of the suspects robbed a sundry shop in Taman Perling here at about 6pm on Monday. He said that police had seized a CCTV camera, an LCD television set, eight machetes, electrical tools and 63 cartons of cigarettes worth about RM20,000 from a Proton Waja that the syndicate used. “We believe that the syndicate used the money they got from their illegal activities to invest in contraband cigarettes before selling them at a higher price than what they had bought them at,” he added.

Source:thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2013/09/13/Indonesian-drug-mule-arrested-after-hotel-room-raid.aspx