Miami hotels feeling Who Dat? fever

by Melanie Nayer on

The Saints are marching into Florida and blanketing Miami in black and gold. According to Miami hotel owners, more rooms are being sold to New Orleans Saints fans for Super Bowl XLIV, outshining the Colts fans in what some could say is an early upset for Indianapolis.

The Miami Herald reports that most callers seeking local rooms were of the Cajun persuasion. “The callers we’re getting all have Cajun accents,” said Robert Finvarb, who owns four Marriott hotels in Broward and Miami-Dade. “Indianapolis is a dog for Super Bowl.”

While there are still plenty of rooms for the taking, some hotels have dropped their prices in an effort to fill space for the notoriously sold out sports weekend.

According to reports, The W Fort Lauderdale has rented 90 percent of its 466 rooms available for Super Bowl. Prices for the swanky digs start at $699. Usually less-expensive hotels like the Hampton Inn and Courtyard Marriott hotels in Florida are offering nights starting at $329. The Ritz-Carlton Fort Lauderdale only has suites left, and they are going for $2,500 a night. I combed through some hotel sites and the best price I could find for the weekend of Feb. 7 was courtesy of the Best Western in North Miami (about 5 miles from the stadium) — the published rate of $260 is available to seniors or AAA members, then jumps to $290 for everyone else.

Of course, you can always sleep in the car, or call your friend’s third cousin who goes to college in Miami. Or, you can make friends with one the losers from Sunday’s game (they’ll be dressed in blue and white) and share space for the night.

Super Bowl attracts fewer private jets

by Tom Johansmeyer on

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: rich people feel pain, too. Super Bowl weekend is usually a big one for private jet rental, but a fierce recession is forcing more to take airlines or … dare I say it … watch the game at home.

Around 750 private jets are expected to touch down in Tampa for Super Bowl XLIII, down 25 percent from last year’s 1,000. The last time the Super Bowl was played in Tampa – eight years ago – 1,250 of these chariots of privilege came to town.

The sting is quite real for Jets.com, a Quincy, MA company in the chartering business. Last year, the company sold 55 Super Bowl charters. This year, only 18 have been booked. And, let’s be realistic. With only a day left, I just don’t believe another 37 will be nailed down at the last minute.

Meanwhile, there is no shortage of stupidity at the destination. Ed Cooley, a senior director at Tampa International who oversees aviation planning for the Super Bowl, says, “We just don’t know” the reason for the private jet drop-off.

Seriously?

[Via St. Petersburg Times]

Strippers abound in Tampa, as expected, for big game

by Tom Johansmeyer on

There won’t be many lonely nights in Tampa this Super Bowl weekend. Prostitutes, it seems, will be widely available. As one of these sex workers remarked, “Pimps see the Super Bowl as a moneymaking opportunity sent by God.” So, if you’re making the trek down to Florida for the biggest sporting event of the year, know that you won’t be alone.

Now, if street-corner encounters are not for you, remember that Tampa is the world’s lap dance capital. Strippers will be out in force, with memories of their financial success from Super Bowl XXXV. Bernie Notte, for example, remembers pulling down $6,000 in four days and dancing even after her feet bled. Liquored up football fans were willing to drop $100 for a $25 dance.

Why focus on strip clubs gentlemen’s clubs? Tampa has 43 of them. “Trampa,” as some call it, has what everyone wants: “Football and naked girls.”

Interestingly, local authorities expect, to a certain extent, that patrons will be on the “honor system,” as they are not stepping up enforcement for the weekend. So, it is up to you to maintain the six-foot distance from a stripper that is required by law. Obviously, local strip club owners are happy about this.

Not that you have any chance of getting that close anyway …

Approximately 7,000 journalists from 500 media organizations have received credentials for the Super Bowl, and they’ll all be pushing up against the main stage when the game is over. Don’t worry, though. The media industry is in crisis, and these guys will run out of singles in less time than it takes to pound an $8 beer.

[Photo of Carmen Luvana thanks to Adam & Eve]

Super Bowl impact on Tampa uncertain

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Playboy has canceled its Super Bowl party. Sports Illustrated has done the same. And, these are just two of the events that have been flushed as team owners and corporate sponsors try to navigate a difficult financial environment.

The good news is that an estimated 100,000 visitors are expected to spend $150 million in Tampa this week, so the Super Bowl is good for something … beside monkeys in commercials. But, this is 20 percent below what they would spend in healthier economic conditions, according to a report by PricewaterhouseCoopers.

For the week ahead, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has remarked that image management will be crucial. “I think the word I would use is extravagant,” Goodell told the Washington Post. “You don’t want that. We understand that. That’s not what the NFL is about. But we do want the event to be exciting.”

Meanwhile, the money engine behind this annual event is showing signs of strain. NBC has set a $3 million price tag per 30-second ad, and 10 percent of its inventory still hasn’t moved. Last year’s game reached 97.5 million viewers, making it the second-largest audience in history. The final episode of M*A*S*H retains the top spot. But, the nine most-viewed shows since 2000 have been Super Bowls.How is the media handling all this? I mean, if you haven’t noticed broadcast and print are host to unprecedented corporate carnage.

Well, the NFL says that the number of companies looking for media credentials is up, thanks to that brave new world of 24-hour news called the internet (which I guess isn’t a fad) and the fact that reporters are notorious for wanting free stuff. But, most media companies are expected to spend smaller teams.

For people who have to pay for access, the story is mixed. All 72,500 tickets were sold, most at $800 a piece. Though 1,000 Super Bowl tickets were cut to $500 each (a $200 discount), 25 percent did sell at a record $1,000 each.

So, there is still plenty of money out there, the question is going to be how far into their wallets travelers will reach. After spending more than $500 on a ticket and probably a few thousand dollars on travel, we need to see how many will add a few extravagant dinners and cigar runs to Ybor City will occur on the periphery.

For now, it looks like the grandest Super Bowl party in the world – the Super Bowl itself – will not be what it has been in past year.

[Via Washington Post]

Still have nowhere to stay for the Superbowl? Try the convent.

by Grant Martin on

In case you still haven’t booked your Phoenix accommodations or were hoping for a last minute steal for the Superbowl, now might be your time to strike. The sisters of Our Lady of Guadalupe Monastery have decided to rent out a few rooms in their convent for football fans, at the palatable rate of only 250 dollars/night (which isn’t bad compared to some of the hotels charging upwards of 1000$).

Tenants are naturally limited on their choice of “extracurricular activities,” as stipulated by the nuns, including no rowdiness or drinking, but if you can get over the rules it’s not a bad deal for the weekend.

Searching through Kayak and Sidestep for “Our Lady of Guadalupe Monestery” in Phoenix, I wasn’t able to find any availability — you might have better luck calling them to check their calendar. At least the rooms look decent, and I bet they’re a hell of a lot cleaner than half of of the hotels out there.

The sisters claim that they’re going to use the money to pay off some property that they purchased. I wonder if you can write off the hotel as a tax deduction?