Man sues Chicago Hilton for $50,000 after tripping over luggage

by Katie Hammel on

It seems there’s no end to the ridiculous things people will sue over these days. There was the alcoholic who drunkenly fell down the stairs and then sued the hotel for over-serving him, the guy who got electrocuted while trying to sneak onto an Amtrak train and then sued the company for parking the trains where it did, and many, many more.

Now a man is suing Chicago’s Palmer House Hilton for $50,000 after he tripped over some unattended luggage in the hotel lobby. The complaint, posted on a Chicago legal website, alleges that “on or about October 7, 2007” the plaintiff, Richard J. Wood, “tripped, stumbled, and/or fell” over the luggage. (Well…which was it? Did he merely stumble, or was it a fall? And how does he not know which day it happened?)

The suit, in its convoluted legalese, alleges that the Hilton staff were careless and negligent in leaving the suitcase out where Wood could trip on it. Apparently, Wood bears no responsibility for not looking where he was going. There’s no word on how the man was physically injured, but the suit claims he suffered “great pain, anguish and suffering, loss of a normal life”. Was it $50,000 worth of anguish? Unless Hilton settles, it’ll be up to the court to decide.

Celebrate National Dessert Month at 5 Fifty 5 in New Orleans

by Katie Hammel on

October is National Dessert Month! Okay, it’s actually National Pizza Month, National Pasta Month, National Pretzel Month and National Pork Month too, but I’m putting my weight behind this one. (Oh who am I kidding, I’m sure I’ll put my “weight” “behind” them all!)

To celebrate this all-important occasion, 5 Fifty 5, the restaurant in the New Orleans Marriott, is offering an incentive to those guests who want to “eat dessert first!” Those who rise to the challenge will receive 20% off their entire bill.

If you can’t quite bring yourself to follow a decadent chocolate cake with lobster macaroni and cheese, crab meat sliders, or a 20 ounce steak with truffle fries, you can still enjoy these delicious desserts after your entree. Special creations unveiled for the promotion include Oreo sandwiches with Creole cream cheese shooters, seven-layer chocolate cake with an Absinthe shake, and a strawberry napoleon with pecan crunch. Can’t decide on just one $5.55 dessert? Order all five for $25.

5 Fifty 5 has won two “Best in Show” awards at the New Orleans Food and Wine Experience, and makes all desserts (plus breads and pastries) in house. The Marriott hotel is located on Canal street in the French Quarter of New Orleans.

If you can’t make it in for a dinner of dessert in October, don’t worry: at 5 Fifty 5, National Dessert Month will extend through November.

No room at the inn: hotels used to house illegal immigrants

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Immigrants awaiting deportation may find themselves in a hotel – provided they are not violent and don’t have any sort of criminal history. The check-in program is intended to cut the cost of holding immigrants before they are deported. Last year, the United States spent $2 billion on sheltering immigrants that would eventually be sent out of the country.

So, will it work?

The cost to detain illegal immigrants in “alternative” facilities (hotels and nursing homes, which are also included in the plan) is estimated to be $14 a day – compared to more than $100 a day to detain them in jails and prisons.

What’s not clear is how this will affect the occupancy rates in hotels near the border. If all goes well, this could be exactly what an ailing hotel industry needs.

Escape from Chicago with low Fall rates at The Abbey

by Katie Hammel on

Several weeks ago, I had the chance to check out The Abbey Resort and Spa on Lake Geneva in Wisconsin. 80 miles from Chicago and even less from Milwaukee, it’s the perfect Fall escape from either city. Chicago residents don’t even need a car to get there; the Metra train runs from downtown Chicago to the Harvard stop, where a resort shuttle bus will pick guests up. Relaxing on the train as the colorful Autumn leaves go by sounds like a great way to get into “vacation mode:”

Fall rates normally start at $216 per night, but for select weekends throughout the next two weeks, The Abbey is offering a special promotion for its Twitter followers and pricing rooms at just $79 per night. The deal is valid on October 7, 11, 12, 13 and 14 with limited availability.

Covered in the rate is daily admission to the spa, which includes use of the locker room, pool, sauna, steam, whirlpool, and all group fitness classes. The resort also offers plenty of Autumn activities onsite and nearby, like games, fall foliage drives, wine-tasting, and you-pick farm stands.

To snag the deal, follow The Abbey on Twitter, and book online using the promo code: TWEET.

Own the Curtis Hotel in Denver for one night

by Katie Hammel on

The Curtis Hotel in downtown Denver is not your typical hotel. Staying here is all about having fun. And what could be more fun than owning an entire hotel, even if only for one night?

Through its Won Night Only promotion, the Curtis is offering up the whole hotel for one night – December 31, 2009 – to the highest bidder.

Up for grabs is a package that includes occupancy of each of the hotel’s 330 rooms (2 people per room, max), including the Rolling Stone suite and the British Invasion suite. The winner, and about 600 of his or her closest friends, will also enjoy a rock-star worthy New Year’s Eve bash with cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, dinner, drinks, late night munchies, live music, the services of a DJ and a professional photographer, and limo service.

The current high bid on eBay is $50,000 (but the undisclosed “reserve” has not been met). Bidding ends on October 11, 2009.

While I’ve never seen a promotion quite like this, it fits right in with the style of the Curtis. The guest rooms themselves are sleek and luxurious, but the rest of the hotel is decked out in whimsical touches that appeal to the kid in each guest.

%Gallery-74710%

Each floor has a theme that’s evident in quirky touches like movie posters and colorful silhouettes decorating the wall. Guests can stay on the “dance floor”, a scary movie floor (appropriately located on floor 13) or other floors themed around pop culture. Each room has a flat screen tv, iPod dock, and free wireless internet.

There’s a fitness center, 24/7 business center, and the lobby features a kitschy “five and dime” that sells classic candy. The lobby also has a Wii system and classic board games for guest use and is decorated with Lite-Brite art . Even the bathrooms are a surprise, with silly sayings painted on the stall doors.

The hotel restaurant, The Corner Office, serves an eclectic menu that’s reasonably priced (the $15 lobster macaroni and cheese is delicious, with big chunks of lobster meat, and the $3.50 desserts like peanut butter crepes and espresso creme brulee are worth every calorie). The Curtis also accepts pets with a $15 daily fee.