In your company, are you responsible for booking venues, facilities, restaurants and organizing transportation for meetings and events?
| Hot Hotels and Cool Nights |
Strategically located, The Westin Houston, Memorial City hotel must have known people would be looking for beautiful poolside space to host events when they built this pool area. Located on the 18th floor, the infinity pool provides you with the feeling of being completely outdoors while keeping a roof over your head. This open design gives guests a beautiful panoramic view of the Galleria and Downtown.
The beautifully designed Embassy Suites Houston Downtown pool and spa can give your next event the extra something you have been looking for. Located on the roof, the pool area was designed to help guests relax and have a good time while checking out one of the best views in Houston. From the poolside, guests can enjoy the sites of Discovery Green Park, Minute Maid Park, Houston Pavilions and many other beautiful features that downtown Houston has to offer.
Hospitality Trends
Over the past few months, the hotel industry has begun to see several emerging trends that many experts feel will continue through the end of 2011 and possibly into the beginning of 2012. These new trends are prompting hotels to deliver more perks to their guests. The following is a selection of the hottest 2011 hospitality trends.
Setting the right mood in a hotel is very important. It can certainly say a lot about the hotel. In an effort to stay up-to-date, hotels are making the switch to digital art. It is 100 percent customizable and the images can easily be changed according to the season or theme of the hotel. Although digital artwork is mostly found in lobbies and public spaces, it is slowly making its way into guest rooms.
Many people are electing to travel with their pets these days. It’s hard to deny, that dogs are quickly becoming the new kids. Hotels are recognizing this trend and are offering services geared to those traveling with their four-legged companions. Some pet services include dog food supplies, pet beds and dog-walking services.
Hospitality companies are partnering with some of the hottest fashion designers to create a more visually appealing hotel. Guests will begin to notice guest rooms and public areas designed like never before.
In an effort to show a more playful and artistic side, hotels are starting to integrate items that allow their guests to customize, per say, their individual guest rooms. Some of these items include chalkboard walls, white boards and removable paint. Each of these unique additions allows the guest to personalize their experience and will leave them with something to talk about.
With workout centers becoming increasingly more important, hotels are taking a second look at their facility to see what upgrades can be made. Hospitality companies are teaming up with spas and fitness gurus to conceptualize and implement their new facilities.
Many companies require hotels and convention centers to offer green meeting spaces. So much so that other non-green hotels will be green with envy of their more eco-friendly counterparts. In-room amenities for guests staying at green hotels will include items created from organic or all-natural ingredients as well as items that come in recyclable or biodegradable packaging.
Over the past several years, a new trend dubbed the 100-mile diet has begun to gain popularity and hotels are beginning to notice. The premise of the diet is to only eat local food items that are grown or can be naturally found within 100-miles of where you live or are staying. As a result, hotels and their spas are looking to embrace this philosophy. Some hotels are even offering local farmers market tours and cooking classes so that guests receive an all-around local feel.
More and more multi-purpose spaces are emerging with hospitality companies. It is becoming increasingly common to find spaces in hotels that serve as clubs and music venues. Having an in-house facility such as this draws in guests staying at the hotel and yet still appeals to the locals during off-season.
Hotels across Europe have removed their old full sheets and have traded them in for featherweight slip-covered comforters. Not only helps it to cut down on the amount of laundry for the hotel, it also provides a more clean and modern aesthetic to the room.
Bar tenders are starting to follow the restaurants lead when it comes to moving tableside and are preparing drinks inside the guest’s room. They are finding that more guests are seeking to watch the show, as apposed to simply having their food or drinks delivered on a tray.
With so many Apps out there, it’s no wonder that the smart phone will soon take center stage when it comes to hotel operations. Guests will soon be able to check in and out of the hotel, request for room service and even enter their room, all with the swipe of a phone.
Another interesting feature for those traveling by air is being able to check in to your hotel upon arrival at the airport. This will certainly be a time-saver if you are rushed to check in at the hotel.
Hotels are starting to share the love… to groups of all sizes, that is. It has been apparent that in years past, only the larger groups got the best deals and all of the attention. Well, this is not the case anymore. Hotels are starting to look to the smaller groups to help them fill up their open guest and meeting rooms.
The beautifully designed Embassy Suites Houston Downtown pool and spa can give your next event the extra something you have been looking for. Located on the roof, the pool area was designed to help guests relax and have a good time while checking out one of the best views in Houston. From the poolside, guests can enjoy the sites of Discovery Green Park, Minute Maid Park, Houston Pavilions and many other beautiful features that downtown Houston has to offer.
Hospitality Trends
Over the past few months, the hotel industry has begun to see several emerging trends that many experts feel will continue through the end of 2011 and possibly into the beginning of 2012. These new trends are prompting hotels to deliver more perks to their guests. The following is a selection of the hottest 2011 hospitality trends.
Setting the right mood in a hotel is very important. It can certainly say a lot about the hotel. In an effort to stay up-to-date, hotels are making the switch to digital art. It is 100 percent customizable and the images can easily be changed according to the season or theme of the hotel. Although digital artwork is mostly found in lobbies and public spaces, it is slowly making its way into guest rooms.
Many people are electing to travel with their pets these days. It’s hard to deny, that dogs are quickly becoming the new kids. Hotels are recognizing this trend and are offering services geared to those traveling with their four-legged companions. Some pet services include dog food supplies, pet beds and dog-walking services.
Hospitality companies are partnering with some of the hottest fashion designers to create a more visually appealing hotel. Guests will begin to notice guest rooms and public areas designed like never before.
In an effort to show a more playful and artistic side, hotels are starting to integrate items that allow their guests to customize, per say, their individual guest rooms. Some of these items include chalkboard walls, white boards and removable paint. Each of these unique additions allows the guest to personalize their experience and will leave them with something to talk about.
With workout centers becoming increasingly more important, hotels are taking a second look at their facility to see what upgrades can be made. Hospitality companies are teaming up with spas and fitness gurus to conceptualize and implement their new facilities.
Many companies require hotels and convention centers to offer green meeting spaces. So much so that other non-green hotels will be green with envy of their more eco-friendly counterparts. In-room amenities for guests staying at green hotels will include items created from organic or all-natural ingredients as well as items that come in recyclable or biodegradable packaging.
Over the past several years, a new trend dubbed the 100-mile diet has begun to gain popularity and hotels are beginning to notice. The premise of the diet is to only eat local food items that are grown or can be naturally found within 100-miles of where you live or are staying. As a result, hotels and their spas are looking to embrace this philosophy. Some hotels are even offering local farmers market tours and cooking classes so that guests receive an all-around local feel.
More and more multi-purpose spaces are emerging with hospitality companies. It is becoming increasingly common to find spaces in hotels that serve as clubs and music venues. Having an in-house facility such as this draws in guests staying at the hotel and yet still appeals to the locals during off-season.
Hotels across Europe have removed their old full sheets and have traded them in for featherweight slip-covered comforters. Not only helps it to cut down on the amount of laundry for the hotel, it also provides a more clean and modern aesthetic to the room.
Bar tenders are starting to follow the restaurants lead when it comes to moving tableside and are preparing drinks inside the guest’s room. They are finding that more guests are seeking to watch the show, as apposed to simply having their food or drinks delivered on a tray.
With so many Apps out there, it’s no wonder that the smart phone will soon take center stage when it comes to hotel operations. Guests will soon be able to check in and out of the hotel, request for room service and even enter their room, all with the swipe of a phone.
Another interesting feature for those traveling by air is being able to check in to your hotel upon arrival at the airport. This will certainly be a time-saver if you are rushed to check in at the hotel.
Hotels are starting to share the love… to groups of all sizes, that is. It has been apparent that in years past, only the larger groups got the best deals and all of the attention. Well, this is not the case anymore. Hotels are starting to look to the smaller groups to help them fill up their open guest and meeting rooms.
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If accepted, your submission will be edited for length and clarity. There is no monetary payment if your item is used; instead, you can publicize yourself through a five-line biography with your contact information that will appear at the end of the article.
Send submissions to
editorial@MeetingPlannerResources.org. We will contact you if your submission is chosen.