Hyatt continues global expansion of Andaz hotels

by Melanie Nayer on

Hyatt’s boutique brand, Andaz, is climbing its way up the hotel chain and making an impact on travelers. The response to Andaz has been bountiful, so much so that Hyatt announced today the company will add three new Andaz properties in Sanya Sunny Bay, China; Delhi, India; and Providenciales, Turks and Caicos.

Andaz, which has only been operating for three years, is Hyatt’s new hotel concept that caters to the urban professional seeking a more trendy experience without luxury prices. The new international properties will join Andaz Liverpool Street, London, Andaz West Hollywood, Andaz Wall Street and Andaz San Diego, the soon-to-be-opened Andaz 5th Avenue New York; Andaz Austin, Texas; Andaz Amsterdam; and Andaz Papagayo, Costa Rica.

The 183-room Andaz Sanya Sunny Bay will be the first Andaz property to feature a resort community. It’s located on the southern oceanside of China’s Hainan Island, and will stand next to the 196-room Park Hyatt Sanya Sunny Bay and branded villas. Andaz Sanya Sunny Bay will offer five restaurants, as well as a 2,500-square-foot ballroom and three meeting rooms. The hotel will share a variety of amenities with Park Hyatt Sanya Sunny Bay, including a Spa Village featuring an outdoor swimming pool, beach club, fitness center, extensive spa facilities and treatment rooms, as well as a restaurant, tea house, and bakery.Andaz Delhi is scheduled to open its 323-rooms and 118 Andaz-branded apartments in 2013. The hotel will feature a variety of amenities including a lounge, theme bar, two restaurants, spa, and fitness center. Additionally, the property will offer a 7,000-square-foot ballroom and seven meeting rooms. This will be Andaz’s first project in India.

The last of the three new properties, the 170-room Andaz Turks and Caicos, will open in 2014 and will include approximately 76 Andaz-branded condominium residences and three villas which owners can choose to place into an Andaz-managed rental program. The hotel will feature a variety of amenities including several restaurants, an outdoor pool, spa and fitness center. Additionally, the property will offer several options for events and meetings, including five Andaz Studios, two trellised courtyards, an event gallery, and a studio display kitchen. The hotel, which will be developed by the Cloisters Group, will be located approximately 15 minutes by car from Providenciales International Airport.

Amsterdam Public Library to become Andaz Hotel

by Melanie Nayer on

The people at the Andaz hotels have been very busy this year. First with the announcement that Andaz will open new hotels in the U.S. in 2010, and then following it up with new properties in New York and California. Now comes word that Andaz Amsterdam will be the first Andaz hotel in mainland Europe.

The 122-room Andaz Amsterdam will open in 2012 on the site of the former Public Library on Amsterdam’s Prinsengracht. We can’t promise you won’t have to sharpen any pencils before arriving, but we’re pretty positive the Andaz Amsterdam will be a welcome addition to Amsterdam’s city hotel options.

The Hyatt Hotel Corporation’s stylish new boutique brand of hotels went mainstream this year, setting its sights on new properties in the U.S. and announcing an expansion in the Europe market. The Andaz Amsterdam will feature a lounge, bar and restaurant as well as fitness and business centers.

The first Andaz, Andaz Liverpool Street in London launched November 2007, followed by Andaz West Hollywood in January 2009 and Andaz Wall Street and Andaz San Diego in early 2010. The Andaz Amsterdam marks the first mainland Europe hotel for the group. Other planned openings include Andaz 5th Avenue, Andaz Austin, and Andaz Papagayo in Costa Rica.

Gadlinks for Thursday, 1.28.2010

by Katie Hammel on

The weekend is almost here! Are you headed anywhere fun? I’m off to sunny Puerto Rico to escape Chicago’s latest cold snap. Here are a few bonus travel stories to keep you dreaming of warmer days.

  • Winter in the northern hemisphere means summer in Buenos Aires. If you’re headed down south, here are a few places to gorge yourself silly, courtesy of Matador writer Tom Gates. [via Matador Nights]
  • Nothing says summer like the sight of tan surfers catching some waves. How does a pro surfer globe-trot? Find out with BootsnAll’s How I Travel profile of surfer Holly Beck. [via BootsnAll]

More Gadlinks HERE.

Business travelers on the brink of scoring free internet access

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Having to pay for internet access in hotels is nothing more than moronic. If the revenue is such a big deal, hotels should just slap the $9.99 — or whatever it is — onto the room rate and tell us they’re giving it away for nothing. But, nothing’s worse than spending $250 a night and having to pay another fee to connect to the web, which you’re going to have to do even if you’re on vacation, let alone traveling for business.

The slump in the travel business is giving business travelers more negotiating leverage, which they are using to score free access to the web. The need to put heads in beds, and business travelers still command the big budgets. Back in my corporate travel days, I’d spend $1,000 or more simply on the room … every week. Most leisure travelers don’t come near that on an annual basis — and my spend was modest compared to executives with the approval to satisfy more discriminating tastes.

So, you’d think hotels would want to keep business travelers happy, right? And since internet access is what’s most important to this group of hotel buyersSome upscale hotels, like the new Andaz chain from Hyatt, are rolling internet access into their rates, while major chains such as Hilton, Marriott and Starwood are giving in to business traveler demands but not changing their policies (to avoid setting a precedent they’ll be stuck with when the market recovers).

For the hotel business, giving up the internet money isn’t easy. The industry is at its 20-year low point, with revenue per available room-night (RevPAR) off 17 percent last year. The top properties suffered RevPAR declines of 24 percent. So, when Toni Hinterstoisser, general manager of the Andaz Wall Street, calls internet access charges “an easy way to make money,” it’s clear that the fee is a hard one to give up. Easy money is the best kind when the travel market is in the tank.

Hyatt’s Andaz opens new hotels in New York, California

by Melanie Nayer on

Hyatt’s boutique brand, Andaz, is making its way from coast-to-coast with new properties in New York and California. Andaz Wall Street opened Jan. 18 and another New York property will be unveiled on 5th Avenue later this year. In the meantime, Andaz San Diego is opening its doors on Feb. 1.

The Andaz Wall Street (photo) features 253 guestrooms with loft-like ceilings and seven-foot windows. Guests can dine at the hotel’s restaurant, Wall & Water, which overlooks the East River. Bar Seven Five, named for its 75 Wall Street address, serves cocktails and appetizers until midnight. Rates for the Wall Street Andaz start at $275/night.

Andaz San Diego will debut in the property currently known as Ivy Hotel in San Diego‘s Gaslamp Quarter at 6th Avenue and F Street. The 159-room hotel features 17 suites, one with exclusive access to a poolside cabana. The Ivy Rooftop features a pool overlooking the city skyline, and serves cocktails until you’re ready to dine at the Ivy Ultra Lounge and Wine Bar, which serves 88 wines by-the-glass. The multi-level Ivy Nightclub gets hopping late-night but don’t worry, the Quarter Kitchen will serve up your hangover recipe of choice the next morning.

Hyatt launched the boutique hotels in 2007 and currently has locations in London and West Hollywood.Rumor in the hotel world is that Hyatt will open an Andaz Austin later this year. We’ll keep you posted on details.