W Atlanta Downtown opens, and guess who’s following in its footsteps

 

W Atlanta Downtown now open

Atlanta has unofficially become the W Hotels capital of the world, if you judge by the count of W’s in one city.  The city’s fourth W, the W Atlanta Downtown, is now open!  This newest hotel joins the existing W Atlanta Perimeter, W Atlanta Buckhead, and W Atlanta Midtown.  

W Atlanta Downtown WET Pool

The W Atlanta Downtown is a 28-floor tower that is actually part of a mixed-use development, Allen Plaza.  The hotel’s 16th level, which will house the Bliss Spa, WET pool, and SWEAT fitness center, will serve as the dividing floor between the 237 guestrooms and the 70+ private residences including six penthouse condos.  Of the four W’s in Atlanta, this is the only one with private residences.  

If I’m not mistaken, this is also the only W in the world that has its own helicopter and rooftop helipad.  ”Special business guests and residents will fly to our hotel via helicopter after arriving at Peachtree-DeKalb or Charlie Brown airports,” said Hal Barry, founder of the developing company Barry Real Estate.

While you might not be able to take a ride in the W Atlanta Downtown chopper, you can stay for a pretty reasonable price.  A quick web search showed weekend rates as low as $146 per night.

But the big question is, who is going to join this new W in Allen Plaza?

According to the website of the developers, we should also see a new Aloft Hotel come up later in 2009 in Allen Plaza to join its big bro, W Atlanta Downtown.  To date, this property hasn’t been listed on Starwood’s websites quite yet . . .

 

Aloft Hotel to join big bro, W Atlanta Downtown

 

 

 

Source: AJC

Starwood to hit 1k in 2009

 

Starwood Hotels list of new hotel openings

Starwood announced yesterday that it will open its 1,000th hotel  later this year.  Currently, the development pipeline consists of more than 400 hotels of which over 60% are located outside of the United States.

Click here for the full list of new properties.

“By working closely with our development partners, we are able to open high caliber, best-in-class hotels around the world, even during challenging economic times,” said Simon Turner, President of Global Development. “Starwood is building, opening, converting, renovating and innovating for the recovery and beyond, and these new hotels will further position Starwood and its development partners for long term growth and success.”

After 10 years of wild success, W Hotels will triple its existing property portfolio over the next three years.  This year, 13 of those properties will open in cities like Barcelona, Bali, Doha, Santiago, South Beach, Hollywood, and Washington D.C.

Another rising star is Aloft Hotels, which currently has 17 hotels in the U.S., Canada, and China.  Aloft will double its hotel count this year.  Starwood’s Element Hotels also expects to open five more hotels this year in th U.S.

Vote for your favorite loyalty programs in the 2009 Freddie Awards!

 

Vote in the 2009 Freddie Awards

The Freddie Awards recognize the world’s best travel rewards programs. What makes them unique is that actual customers decide who the winners are.

For over 20 years, frequent travelers have made their picks for the best frequent travel programs through the Freddie Awards.  Created by InsideFlyer magazine publisher Randy Petersen, the Freddies allow members to rank airline and hotel programs. Since then, the Freddie Awards have become the most prestigious customer-generated recognition of loyalty programs in the industry.

This year’s Freddie Awards ceremony will be held in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on April 23, 2009 at the Hilton Fort Lauderdale Airport in conjunction with the FTMA 2009 Spring Conference.

Here are the individual categories:

Best Award
Best Bonus
Best Affinity Credit Card
Best Newsletter/Member Communications
Best Web Site
Best Customer Service
Best Award Redemption

Last year, Starwood’s SPG program took the Program of the Year award in Europe, Middle East, Africa, Japan, Pacific, Asia, and Australia.  Marriott Rewards won bragging rights for the Americas.  For full details on the winners in previous years, click here.

The time is now to vote for your favorite airline and hotel loyalty programs!  Voting ends February 28th!

How many Starwood’s received the prestigious 2009 Mobil Five Star Awards?

 

St. Regis San Francisco - Mobil Five-Star award winner

This past week, the 2009 Mobil Five-Star Awards were awarded to 44 hotels and resorts in North America.  This year, there were three new hotels added to the prestigious list from last year.

If I’m not mistaken, three outstanding Starwood properties made Mobil’s Five-Star list this year: The St. Regis San Francisco, The St. Regis New York, and The St. Regis Monarch Beach (Orange County, CA).  A big congratulations to these properties and to those St. Regis butlers for providing the highest levels of service.  The rest of the list was dominated by the perennial powerhouses, Four Seasons and Ritz-Carlton . . . not much surprise there.

The St. Regis San Francisco has received the prestigious Mobil Five-Star award each year since its opening in 2005.  

 

Mobil Travel Guide is in its 51st year as the world’s gold standard of hotel inspection and ratings system.  Unlike reviews done by travelers on websites like TripAdvisor, these Mobil reviews are performed by highly trained inspectors who apply rigorous evaluation standards.  This year marks the first time in history Mobil has inspected and awarded Stars to hotels in international cities, including Beijing, Hong Kong, and Macau.  Hong Kong and Macau were awarded the most Mobil Five-Star rated hotels for a given city in history.

For the full list of five-star hotels, point your clicker right here.

 

St. Regis New York

St. Regis Monarch Beach

Steelers and Cardinals fans, claim your rooms at the brand new Westin Tampa Bay Airport

 

Westin Tampa Bay Airport

Originally scheduled to open two months from now, the Westin Tampa Bay Airport Hotel is preparing to open its doors today.  Why?  Oh, just a little thing we call the Superbowl.

“Of course, our goal was to open in time for Super Bowl, but our priority was to open and open correctly,” said Ron Alicandro, General Manager of the Westin Tampa Bay Airport Hotel.

According to a local Tampa news channel, a four-night minimum for a standard room costs $695 per night.  This new Westin has a heated pool and whirlpool, as well as a white sand beach.  If this is anything like the new W Scottsdale’s setup, it’s bound to be easy on the eyes.  There’s also a rooftop venue called Blue Vu, which houses a loungey vista point overlooking those famous Floridian sunsets.  

“It’s been pretty crazy. We’ve had people form both Arizona and Pittsburgh calling, looking for availability so the phone’s just been ringing, ringing off the hook. We like that,” said a hotel representative.

Westin Tampa Bay Airport

 

Photo:  TampaFlHomeSearch

How about a night of artistic and eco-friendly luxury for $99?

To celebrate the coming of 2009, The Nines Hotel in Portland, OR is offering $99 room rates for 99 days.  This promotion started on January 9th, but it’s not too late to take advantage.

This deal offers quite the rare opportunity to experience one of Starwood’s Luxury Collection hotels at such a low rate.  Back when the hotel first opened towards the end of last year, they were offering grand opening rates of around $150 a night.  By comparison, this $99 deal is quite a steal!

The Nines commissioned local Portland artists to create 419 pieces of contemporary art including sculptures, paintings, and installations to grace its grand atrium.  Each of the 331 guestrooms has original artworks created in part by the Pacific Northwest College of Art.

Portland locals approve of the hotel’s commitment to environmental initiatives.  The building has incorporated conservation elements, including a plumbing system that is expected to save up to 500,000 gallons of water annually.  Additionally, housekeeping products are Green Seal certified, and a portion of the hotel’s energy comes from renewable wind power.  

This $99 introductory offer is available for stays now through April 18, 2009.

Here’s the official terms and conditions.

 

Photo: Hawkins International

Delayed but all the more anticipated: W Barcelona and W Hoboken

 

Much like the delay in my posts (been quite busy the last couple of weeks), delays are expected for both the upcoming W Barcelona and W Hoboken.  

The W Barcelona originally anticipated a Spring opening, but the hotel now projects it will begin accepting reservations for October 1, 2009.  With its fitting home in Barcelona, this W should be well worth the wait especially since it will be the first W to open its doors in Europe.  Barcelona is well positioned on the Mediterranean shores and boasts a rich and flamboyant culture.  The city offers enthralling architecture, and the W is no exception.  The 473-room hotel is shaped like a sail on the waterfront and designed by the famed architect, Ricardo Bofill.  I have no doubt that its interior design will also reflect the artistic spirit of Barcelona albeit with a modern interpretation.

W Barcelona

The W Hoboken is the hottest thing to hit New Jersey, but unfortunately we’ll have to wait a tad longer than expected for the grand opening (originally February 26).  According to the folks over at Hotel Chatter, this W is now taking reservations for mid-March with an official grand opening on April 16.  The 225-room W Hoboken sits on the Hudson River and promises magnificent views of the Manhattan skyline.  Their average nightly rates should be easier on the wallets than the sister W’s in NY.  As a category 5 property (12,000-16,000 Starpoints), this hotel won’t drain your SPG account either.

W Hoboken

 

 

Source: Hotel Chatter

Awaken with breakfast at St. Regis hotels

Nothing beats a five-star breakfast, especially when it’s compliments of the house!  For all of 2009, participating St. Regis properties are offering packages that include a divine continental breakfast experience.  This package is called, “Awaken” and is available at most of St. Regis hotels (check availability and book by clicking right here).  

 

The St. Regis San Francisco

Countdown to Starwood’s Q1 SPG promotion . . . and my GMAT exam

 

SPG Q1 Promotion

In a few short hours, I will begin the grueling GMAT exam as part of my application to the Cornell MMH program.  The GMAT is the last remaining component of my application packet, and it won’t be long now before I hear the admissions results.  Cross your fingers for me!

On the other hand, in a few short hours you will register for the SPG Q1  bonus Starpoints promotion and begin mapping out your future hotel reservations with the incentive of bonus Starpoints.  Registration for the promotion begins promptly at 9:00am Eastern Time on Jan 7, 2009 .

While not quite the same as last week’s countdown to midnight, we are approaching the final hours before Starwood’s Q1 SPG Promotion goes live.  “Night After Night” is the name of SPG’s newest Starpoints promo that will get you 500 bonus Starpoints PER NIGHT plus an additional 5,000 bonus Starpoints for every 10th night you stay.  

Since I have been eating and sleeping GMAT questions lately, I thought I might share a sample problem with you . . .

Joe is a Starwood Preferred Guest and recently signed up for the new Night After Night SPG promotion.  Under this promotion, his qualifying reservations will award him a bonus 500 Starpoints for each night plus a bonus 5,000 Starpoints after every 10th night he stays at a Starwood Hotel.  Which of the following number of cumulative nights would allow Joe to receive the maximum average number of Starpoints per night under this promotion?

A) 5

B) 8

C) 12

D) 20

E) 24

If you play  your cards right, you can average up to 1,000 Starpoints per night.  To do this, you want to make sure you hit 10-night milestones.  For example, if you stay 20 nights you get 20,000 Starpoints (20 x 500 = 10,000 . . . plus the 10,000 bonus points from hitting two 10-night milestones).  20,000 points divided by 20 nights results in an average of 1,000 Starpoints per night.  However, hit only 19 nights and you get 14,500 Starpoints using the same calculation.  In this scenario, you would only average 763 Starpoints per night.  That 20th night is worth 5, 500 Starpoints!  The correct answer is D.

If only the GMAT questions were so simple . . .

As an added bonus, the nights you stay under this promo also count towards your elite qualifying nights and stays for 2009.  Since it’s early in the year and rates have been the lowest in years, you could accrue some valuable Starpoints and achieve elite status for less than ever before.  Keep in mind there is NO earnings cap for this promotion so get ‘em while you can.  :-)

This promotion is open to any SPG member, but make sure you register once the promo page goes live in just a few short hours.  Also keep in mind that the valid dates for bookings under this promo are between January 7 – April 30, 2009.

Here are the full T&C’s.  Okay, back to studying.  Just wanted to make sure you all registered for this promotion!

Starwood says goodbye to the W Honolulu and three resorts in French Polynesia

 

Bora Bora Nui Resort & Spa

Starwood announced last week that it will lose three resort properties in French Polynesia this year.  The Sheraton Hotel Tahiti, Sheraton Moorea and Bora Bora Nui Resort & Spa (Luxury Collection) will carry the flags of other hotel brands at some point this year.  This announcement followed a mutual agreement between Louis Wane, owner of the above mentioned resorts, and Starwood mutually agreed to end their management contract.  On the plus side, not all will be lost in French Polynesia.  Starwood plans on retaining the St. Regis Bora Bora Resort, Le Meridien Tahiti and Le Meridien Bora Bora.

W Honolulu (Diamond Head) leaving Starwood on Jan 9

While other W Hotels seem to be popping up all over the world (see blog posts on Hong Kong, Santiago, Scottsdale, Hollywood), Starwood will say a parting mahalo and aloha to the W Honolulu – Diamond Head in just a few days.  

As displayed on the hotel website, “As of January 9, 2009, W Honolulu Diamond Head will no longer be a part of Starwood Hotels & Resorts.  Management of the hotel will transfer to the owner Anekona W, LLC and the hotel will remain in operation under a new name.   All existing and new room bookings will be honored, however the hotel will not be participating in any Starwood sponsored programs, including Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG), airline partner, or other partner affinity programs.  As a result, SPG points or airline miles will be awarded for hotels stay from January 9, 2009 and beyond. Thank you for your support and patronage.”

Yikes!  If you’re going to Honolulu, or any of the French Polynesia Starwoods, I suggest you contact the hotel to make sure you know how they will be handling existing reservations.  This is of particular importance if you booked using SPG Starpoints in any way.

Honestly, the W Honolulu was not the supermodel of the W family, but its location near Diamond Head gave this property a sense of privacy and serenity that the other Waikiki Starwoods could never provide.  I remember taking a jog from the Westin Moana towards Diamond Head just to check out the W.  The path along Waikiki Beach down Kalakaua Street and around Kapialani Park wore me out, but thankfully the W provided a much needed pit stop complete with a refreshing ginger infused water in the living room.  

 

W Honolulu (Diamond Head) Living Room in Nov 2007