Hanoi Holiday (Inn)

by Josh Lew on

Though the rapid rate of development has not hit Hanoi as hard as it has Ho Chi Minh City, the capital city of Vietnam still seems overwhelmed with new constructions. How this affects tourism numbers in the long term remains to be seen, but, for now, the number of visitors is rising (2 million international visitors projected by 2010).

Hanoi is known for its lakes and for being a city built by many different influences. Tourists are drawn by the unique blend of French, Chinese and Vietnamese architecture, art and cuisine. Hanoi is rushing to compound its tourism success. New roads, shopping centers and hotels are a big part of the effort. One wonders if the charm and urban quaintness that has attracted people in the past will be lost amidst the blitz of all things new.

An example of this modernization: a Holiday Inn, Hanoi’s first, will be completed in 2010. The glitzy 300 room hotel will sit at the middle of a large upscale shopping, commercial and entertainment complex in the central Dong Da District. InterContinental Hotels Group, which is responsible for bringing the well known hotel brand to Vietnam, is banking on its name to help it succeed. Holiday Inn is a familiar hotel and, in an up-and-coming destination like Hanoi, that might lead to many people choosing it as a default when it comes to accommodation.

The coming of Holiday Inn and its ilk might be a bad signal for all the family-run guest houses and locally owned inns that dot the city. I’m not going to say that all this development is ruining the Hanoi experience. I’m going to think it, but I won’t say it. You can’t really criticize a city for trying to modernize and bring more dollars into its economy. At the same time, those of you who want to experience the deep sense of history and the diverse cultural influences might want to start booking your flight soon, lest you find nothing but Holiday Inns and KFCs.

Wooden hotel keycards to debut next week in Denver

by Meg Massie on

From changing linens and towels daily to keeping the air conditioner in every room turned to 55 degrees in the summer, hotels have been coming under fire for a long time over their wasteful use of resources. With the environment in the spotlight as the 2008 US Presidential election approaches, hotels are beginning to take steps toward better environmental practices.

This morning, Sustainable Cards, maker of the United States’ first wooden hotel keycards, announced that 70,000 biodegradable wooden keycards will be used in Denver hotels during next week’s Democratic National Convention.

Wooden keycards have been used in European hotels for almost ten years. Sustainable Cards argues that these keys are just as durable as the plastic versions, but unlike plastic, wood is renewable and biodegradable. Right now, it is estimated that hotels in the US produce 1,300 tons of waste each year from plastic keycards alone.

If you are one of the first Americans to use these eco-friendly keycards in Denver, Sustainable Cards wants your feedback on their website. Of course, we want to hear about it, too. Leave your comments with us, and if you want more hotels to embrace these biodegradable keycards, let them know about it, too. Fill out comment cards when you stay or send suggestions via hotel websites.

Dubai to Become World’s Top Spa Destination

by Josh Lew on

Besides being a destination for people who like designer boutiques, tall buildings and overpriced restaurants, Dubai is on its way to becoming the best place in the world to find the perfect spa experience. The spa industry is growing by nearly 20% per year. By 2010, it is projected that Dubai will surpass other destinations with a total of 15 million visitors at its spas.

Everyone (including former Mrs. Kid Rock Pamela Anderson) is trying to get in on the hotel boom that the emirate is currently experiencing. And what’s a luxury hotel without a spa? Themed spas are virtually required for any glitzy new inn.

Yes, Dubai is theme-happy. They have built housing developments that resemble palm trees and world maps. Spas are not immune from this fad. A few examples: The Ritz-Carlton’s Balinese spa, Shangri-La’s Chinese themed Spa, an the Indian spa at the Taj Palace.

Dubai has a leg up on, say, Scottsdale, in terms of luxury. But that is probably because it has to. The whole emirate is a luxurious version of an adult DisneyWorld, complete with Formula One racing and shopping malls.

Would people still be flocking to Dubai if it didn’t have all those over-the-top elements?

Hotels (try to) give new meaning to women-friendly floors

by Abha Malpani on

Years ago, hotels would have women-only floors targeted at women traveling alone as a way of increasing their female clientele by promising safety through exclusivity by gender. Of course, that was thrown into obsolescence after being considered sexist and discriminatory.

However, hospitality marketing gurus have managed to swirl around the “women-only” floor idea into one of “women-friendly” floors. Some rooms on such floors have special items for women (a Victoria’s Secret bathrobe, a blow dryer, vanity mirrors), and yoga stuff for women who want to work out, but, to avoid the sexist tag, the floors and facilities are not exclusive to women.

Hmmm…so what makes them special? Some facial creams and nail-polish that the other rooms don’t have?

In other words, hotels are out of ideas to market their services, so they take an old idea, tweak it to sound like a new one when it’s really not an idea at all. Then they sell it as a novel service for a niche audience and get some press.

Hotels such as the Crowne Plaza, the Hilton, and the Hampton Inn have been successful with this marketing gimmick, that too outside the Middle East — so who am I to criticize it. Time will tell how much female customers succumb to this marketing ploy.

An ending note for hotels: your customers are smarter than you realize.

Vegas Building Boom Means Cheap Rooms

by Josh Lew on

Las Vegas is feeling the pinch of slumping travel numbers. The amount of visitors who enter Sin City has dropped by nearly 5%, but the construction of new hotels has led to an increase in rooms. Who to fill them?

Once they get over criticizing themselves for lacking foresight, hotel execs have to find a way to hawk all those empty beds.

The obvious strategy, at least for the short term, is to lower prices until they reach a point where visitors won’t mind shelling out a little extra for the flight because they are getting such a ridiculously cheap deal from the hotel.

How cheap is ridiculously cheap? According to MSNBC, over half the casino-owned hotels in the city are offering rates of $50 per night or below. Yes, that type of price is usually reserved for roadside motels where you can also choose to pay by the hour. Even high end, established names like Luxor and MGM Grand have rooms available for under $100 per night.

However, the famous ad campaign tag-line might be true of hotels as well. What happens in Vegas…isn’t happening elsewhere just yet. Rooms in Chicago, New York and other major metro areas are still at full price. International tourists, convention-goers, and business travelers make up the bulk of New York’s hotel customers. They have other bases to rely on as the number of US-based leisure travelers decline. That is not so in Las Vegas.

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