MARKET InFoRMAT Ion FRoM PAndox – onE oF THE LEAd InG HoTEL PRoPERTY CoMPAnIES In EURoPE no. 3 • 2009

PANDOX

Dawn in the west?

Falling stars – hotels wash away the luxury stamp

N e w sSorry… 2010 will be a weaker year for hotels than the present one. Judging by the conversations I have had around our network, many hotels seem to be budgeting for a relatively strong 2010. Some believe that the market has already bottomed out and that we will enjoy growth in RevPAR as early as the first quarter of next year. Unfortunately, this can only be regarded as pure wishful thinking rather than the result of in-depth analysis. The trend tells us something entirely different.

Based on an examination of the pattern of the hotel business cycle, earnings will continue to decrease in the future, although at a slower pace. Volumes will gradually stabilise while there will continue to be extreme pressure on prices for a long time in the future. This opinion is based on the state of the markets which are first in the business cycle, and the New York high price segment is one of these. Following a drastic decrease in RevPAR of almost 40 per cent starting in the third quarter of 2008, volumes are now beginning to stabilise. But RevPAR is still decreasing, as prices are still declining. Pandox assesses that we still have six to eight months to go before RevPAR bottoms out in the global metropolis.

In turn, this means that large cities in Europe, which are behind New York in the business cycle, have at least one year still to go before incipient stable growth returns. Based on these analysis, we will not see any growth in RevPAR in Scandinavia in 2010. This time interval makes sense, as it usually takes 2½ years from top to bottom in the major hotel markets.

Winners and losersLooking beyond 2010, at the top of the winner list will be hotels in markets with small shares of new capacity, those which possess high standard revenue management expertise and those which manage to persuade existing guests to spend more during their stays, something which usually results in increased productivity. This is not the simplest of things to bring about! The list of hotels regarded as losers will grow considerably longer in the forthcoming years. Newly constructed hotels and hotels acquired during the top year of 2008 can count on selective marking by financing institutes.

Banks may play a key role and affect the structure. There are rumours that there are hundreds of hotels in the London banking system which are regarded as distressed assets. In many cases, valuations have decreased so much that equity has been completely exhausted, giving the go-ahead to banks to act as they see fit.

In the past, banks have dealt with this problem in two ways, one active and one passive. Unfortunately, the passive strategy has dominated, with banks closing their eyes and hoping that improvements in surrounding conditions will solve their problem. The active model involves banks doing what the Swedish government-owned Securum company did at the beginning of the 1990s – taking over the assets and developing them under the banks’ own auspices through professional organisations. We hardly need point out that the latter model is the most profitable.

Even though downturns in the business cycle hurt, they are nevertheless necessary. Market fluctuations reward expertise and long-term strategies. Many players seem to be surprised by the downturn. And the fact that on top of that the affliction is refusing to go away immediately is being taken by many almost as a personal insult. Everyone who has spent a long time in the hotel sector knows just how volatile the market is. Unfortunately, memories are often short, and we quickly forget how bad things were in this downturn.

Some things are normalAt the time of writing, Pandox’ Hotel Market Day is just around the corner. The flags are about to be raised outside the Hilton Stockholm Slussen, the guests are on their way and the speeches have been prepared. Our permanent moderator, Bengt Brodin, is dashing towards Hilton Slussen with his glasses on his nose and his overhead projector under his arm – so everything is as normal here. Most welcome!

Yours truly,Anders Nissen

PS. How can we ever thank him enough, now that we know Henke Larsson’s career is over. You will forever have a place in our hearts! Who can possibly forget the goal Henke headed against Bulgaria! Let’s hope there is enough good sense around for Helsingborg to be renamed Henkeborg.

AugustScandic continues to grow in Oslo and signs an agreement with Fornebu Hotell AS on operating the new hotel at Fornebustrand. The hotel, which is situated 10 minutes’ walk from the centre of Oslo and which will have 300 rooms, a restaurant, spa and conference space for up to 1000 people, is scheduled to open during 2012.

Elite Hotels expands in Malmö south of Sweden. The Elite Plaza, which will have 125 rooms, will open its doors to the public on Gustav Adolfs torg in October 2010.

In October, Hotel Karlaplan in central Stockholm will leave the Choice chain and join Best Western Hotels instead. The hotel is located in a property dating from 1914 that previously housed the Salvation Army war college. In 2005, the property was completely renovated and today offers 85 rooms in six different categories.

SeptemberJurys Inn Hotels opens a four-star hotel in Prague. This is Jurys’ first hotel outside Great Britain and Ireland. The hotel offers 214 rooms and is located within walking distance of Prague’s historic old town.

Starwood takes its “The Luxury Collection” brand to Moscow. The Hotel National, which was built in 1903, will go through an extensive renovation, and will be completely ready for re-opening by the end of 2012 with 206 rooms and 56 suites. Many of the rooms will look out on the Kremlin and Red Square.

The Spanish hotel chain NH Hotels is merging with its competitor Hesperia and integrating Hesperia’s 51 hotels into its operations. After the merger, NH Hotels will have somewhat more than 400 hotels in Spain, the rest of Europe and America.

Ramada opens its first hotel in Russia. The Ramada Yekaterinburg is located 35 kilometres from Kotsovo International airport. The hotel has 132 rooms, 24 suites, a restaurant, three bars and business and fitness centres.

Hilton continues its expansion in Italy. Hilton Giardini Naxos in Sicily is undergoing comprehensive renovation at present, and will open in 2010 with 296 rooms, of which 33 will be suites. Doubletree by Hilton Oblia-Sardinia is a new project with 124 rooms. It will open at the end of 2009.

Accor is selling 158 hotels. The F1 budget hotel in France is being sold in a sale and lease back deal to reduce the chain’s liabilities.

As part of the deal, Accor has signed a 12-year lease agreement for the properties and will continue to run operations at all the hotels.

Upgrade can be ordered from Pandox or read online at www.pandox.se

Editors: Anders Nissen, Annelie Sundström AguilarMichaela Borg, Anette PaulssonPandox ABP O Box 5364SE-102 49 StockholmTel: +46 (0)8 506 205 50Fax: +46 (0)8 506 205 70E-mail: pandox@pandox.se

Visiting address: Grev Turegatan 44, Stockholm

Graphic design and production:Hallvarsson & Halvarsson

Photo: Ulf Blomberg, Getty Images, Shutterstock and others.

Tryck: Jernström Offset, Stockholm, November 2009.Reproduction only by permission from Pandox.

Front cover: Pandox-owned Holiday Inn Brussels Airport in Belgium.

Pandox Upgrade – market information from Pandox – published approximately three times annually.

Market information from Pandox

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N e w s Funding and crisis issues on the agenda in London

The market on the market

This year the European Hotel Finance and Investment Summit was held at the Hilton Park Lane in London. Two of the most important issues discussed were the difficulties financing property acquisitions and new projects within the hotel industry. And following on quite naturally from this, the question arose of just how far we are from recovery.

The seminar, which was held for the ninth year in a row, began with an in-depth analysis by the Bank of America Merrill Lynch, which pointed to a certain brightening on the western horizon. The housing market has started to recover in the USA and the number of notices to quit is decreasing. Saving is still increasing but at a far slower rate. On the other hand, the bank, which believes consumption will increase somewhat in 2010 compared with 2009, assesses that Europe will recover more quickly than the USA, as prior to the downturn, the economies of most European countries were relatively well balanced. Moreover, the bank also assesses that Germany will be the driving force behind the European recovery. On the other hand, Great Britain will find recovery somewhat more problematical because of high inflationary pressure in the economy stemming from the weakening of the pound sterling. This is likely to force the Bank of England to raise interest rates as early as the spring of 2010.

Strategy in a downturn Later on the first day of the seminar, there was a panel discussion about how to react to the downturn when running a hotel business. Paul White, who is CEO of the five-star hotel chain Orient-Express Hotels, pointed out a number of aspects which they had been working on. These above all concerned the extra sources of earnings that could be added to the services on offer and reviewing the menus of the various hotels. Reducing menus by 1–2 dishes may enable a hotel to reduce its kitchen staff. Moreover, Orient-Express Hotels is very much committed to providing that little extra when guests arrive and depart, such as a free welcome drink or a coffee prior to departure – anything to increase guests’ feelings of wellbeing, something which they seemed to have succeeded in doing. They state that 60 per cent of all guests are coming back.

All the panel participants agreed that the technique of working through the internet with individual hotel websites and through Expedia and other websites is making it easier to quickly circulate the various offers, and this is improving the opportunities for a quicker recovery than was the case during previous crises in the industry.

distressed assetsNext there was a funding panel whose participants included Rod Taylor from Europe Arab Bank and Barbara J Levi from Caylon. The panel discussed opportunities for borrowing during the current situation. They all agreed strongly that there are definitely opportunities around, but that LTV is consider-ably lower today than it was one year ago. Long-term sustainable solutions are needed. Moreover, there was general agreement that banks prefer to work with their existing customers during their loan crises rather than release distressed assets into the market, thereby resulting in large impairment write-downs instead. This would seem to indicate that perhaps fewer distressed assets are coming onto the market than some people had hoped for.

The European hotel property marketJon Hubbard from Jones Lang LaSalle took stock of the European market up until 2009. He ascertained that there had been extremely few transactions, and this above all was the result of difficulties in obtaining loans and the declining profits on hotel operations. Assessing property values is not easy. Major price adjustments in the property market as a whole – at places as much as 40 per cent lower than the peak years – rub off on the value of hotel property. There are major differences between the purchase prices buyers and sellers are willing to accept.

Up until August 2009, turnover in hotel property in Europe were around 1.7 billion euros compared with the peak years of 2006 and 2007, when turn-over was between 22 and 23 billion euros. And even then, purchases in 2009 above all stemmed from institutional investors and hotel operators.

The Hilton is changing its logo. Hilton Hotel Corporation has changed its name to Hilton Worldwide to better reflect its global presence. A new logo is also being launched together with the new name, and is intended to reflect the company’s

quality, dedication to excellence of service and its dynamic vision of the future.

Arora International Hotels has entered a joint venture with Whitbread to build four new Premier Inn Hotels. The four hotels will have a total of 1570 rooms and will open in stages starting in the autumn of 2011. A 400-room hotel will open at Heathrow terminal 5, a 240-room hotel will open at Heathrow terminal 4, there will be a 630-room hotel at Gatwick north ter-minal and a 300-room hotel at Stansted.

The InterContinental Hotels Group is plan-ning to open its next Indigo hotel in Europe in Glasgow. The hotel will be situated on a former office complex on Waterloo Street in Glasgow’s international financial district. The hotel is scheduled to open in the spring of 2011, and will have 96 rooms.

Rezidor is closing the Radisson Blu Hotel at Fredrikstad in Norway. Radisson has been operating the complex since February 2007, but has now decided to terminate the contract on the property with its 172 hotel rooms.

OctoberIn October, the InterContinental Hotels Group is opening a new Holiday Inn Express in central Hamburg at Lübecker Straße 101. The hotel offers 179 rooms with Express’ new bedroom design.

Omena hotels from Finland opens a hotel in Copenhagen. The Apple First International Hotel will open in June 2010 close to Tivoli and the Ströget shopping street, and will have some 230 rooms. Omena hotels has signed a lease agreement with the Norwe-gian hotel investor Norgani Hotels. The hotel will operate with minimum service.

Russia’s sixth largest town Samara is to have its own Hilton Garden Inn. The hotel will have 195 rooms and is expected to open some time in 2012. This will be the second Hilton Garden Inn in Russia, where there is already one in the city of Perm.

from the hotel world

Palace Kämp Hotels is opening a new hotel at terminal 2 at Helsinki airport in January 2010. The new hotel will be designed in accordance with Palace Kämp Hotels’ lifestyle concept and aims to attract both business travellers and holidaymakers.

InterContinental Hotels Group is plan-ning to open yet another Indigo hotel in England. The third Indigo hotel will open in central Liverpool in 2011, and will have 151 rooms.

Accor is opening a new hotel in London under its new “All Seasons Hotels” brand. It will have 105 rooms. The

hotel will be named All Seasons London Southwark Rose and will be located close to London Bridge. Through this brand, Accors is aiming to recreate service and value. The idea is for it to be an intermediate class brand.

Elite Hotels are opening a new hotel in central Stockholm. The property at Rotundan 3 on the corner of Linné- gatan and Sturegatan will be converted to a hotel, which will be named the Elite Eden Park Hotel. It will have 132 rooms, an Asian restaurant and an English pub under The Bishop’s Arms brand. The hotel is scheduled to open in October 2010.

Scandic are opening on Vasagatan in Stockholm. The new hotel will take over a classic site. Vasagatan was given its name during Stockholm’s major name review in 1885, and the building now being converted into a hotel is 130 years old. Construction has already started, and the hotel will have approx-imately 400 rooms and is scheduled to open in the autumn of 2011.

Rica Hotels plan to open a new hotel in Trond-heim. Bakke multi-storey car

park will be converted to a 172-room hotel. It is intended to be an energy efficient hotel with energy consumption around 120 kWh per square metre.

Choice is taking over Hotel G in Copenhagen from 1 December 2009. This will be the seventh Comfort hotel in Denmark with 82 rooms, of which two are suites.

Market information from Pandox

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Focus on the sector

The USUp until the end of September, the American market saw occupancy decrease by 10 per cent compared with the same period in 2008, and occupancy remained at 57 per cent. The average price for the period dropped to USD 98, equivalent to a decrease of nine per cent compared with previous years. This resulted in an 18 per cent decrease in RevPAR for the whole of the US up to the end of last September.

New York is the market placed first in the business cycle and the one which was hardest hit by the downturn. Occupancy decreased by eight per cent, while prices dropped by 25 per cent up until the end of last September. The drop in RevPAR compared with the same period last year amounted to 31 per cent. Occupancy ended up at 76 per cent and the average price was USD 201.

A closer study of the third quarter in the US shows that the rate of the decline is beginning to slow a little. RevPAR sank by 17 per cent compared with the same quarter last year. Prices suffered a decrease of 10 per cent, while occupancy for the quarter dropped by eight per cent. We see the same trend in some of the largest US cities.

During the third quarter, the speed of the drop in RevPAR in New York decreased, although from a high level. The change in RevPAR for the quarter was minus 28 per cent, most of which stemmed from lower prices.

If one looks at developments within various segments in the US, the luxury segment suffered the worst drop until the end of last September with RevPAR coming in 27 per cent down, followed by the resort segment with a decrease of just over 20 per cent.

Market developments are affecting the number of new hotel projects. In the period up until last September, the number of new hotel rooms planned in the American market decreased by 31 per cent compared with the same period in 2008. Hotel rooms in the budget segment are decreasing most – at more than 50 per cent.

EuropeLondon is one of the large European cities to have best withstood the downturn. Up until last September, RevPAR had only decreased by six per cent, and the whole decline stemmed from lower room prices. Average prices have been

Things are lightening in the west

– but how far away is the dawn?Some things are looking brighter in the west. The first indication that the hotel business cycle has started to turn is usually an increase in demand in the high price segment in New York.

This was what happened at the latter end of the summer. The question now is how long the rest of the hotel world will have to wait for a change in the trend in their own markets. Will the delay be the same as during previous business cycles or can we hope for a faster recovery this time?

Market information from Pandox

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under pressure and decreased by seven per cent to GBP 123 up until last December. Occupation in London during the period ended up at 81 per cent, which is in line with the same period the previous year, with the result that RevPAR finished at GBP 100. During the third quarter in London, figures show prices had come under additional pressure. RevPAR for the period decreased by nine per cent compared with 2008.

Berlin ended up with 68 per cent occupancy for the period up until last September, which is two per cent lower than the same period in 2008. Average prices were EUR 81, which was eight per cent less than in 2008. RevPAR in Berlin finished at just under EUR 55 for the period, which was equivalent to a decline of 10 per cent. Third quarter figures for Berlin show a provisional recovery. Here RevPAR decreased by five per cent as a result of lower prices. Prices during the quarter dropped by five per cent.

The pattern is the same for other major German cities with two-figure decreases in RevPAR in most cities for the January-September period. Hamburg is one of the few exceptions, and so far has withstood the crisis better with a decrease in RevPAR of seven per cent up until last September.

Paris had a tough time in the spring of 2009, but recovered somewhat during the summer season. Occupancy up until last September dropped by six per cent compared with the same period in 2008, ending up at 74 per cent. Prices have declined by 11 per cent and the average price is now EUR 217 compared with EUR 243 last year. RevPAR up until last September was EUR 160, which corresponds to a drop of 16 per cent. The third quarter of 2009 shows the downturn slowing somewhat with a change in RevPAR of 11 per cent. Above all room prices are pressing RevPAR down.

For the whole period up until last September, prices, occupancy and RevPAR in Brussels were all under pressure, and ended the period 18 per cent down, due in equal parts to decreasing prices and occupancy. The downturn continued during the third quarter taken separately. RevPAR ended up 20 per cent down compared with 2008.

Eastern Europe is now showing even poorer figures. Riga is one of the cities which suffered the severest hotel climate up until the end of September 2009 with RevPAR dropping 40 per cent, attributable to lower prices and decreased occupancy in roughly equal parts. Prague and Warsaw occupy two of the bottom places with declines in RevPAR for the period of 31 and 30 per cent respectively.

ScandinaviaThe global downturn is also affecting Scandinavia. Worst hit is Copenhagen, followed closely by Helsinki. Until the end of last September, RevPAR had dropped by 20 and 17 per cent respectively compared with the previous year. Copenhagen had lost nine per cent occupancy with an average of 64 per cent for the period. The price decreased by 12 per cent to DKK 817, which resulted in RevPAR of DKK 519 for the period. Helsinki lost 10 per cent occupancy, and the price declined by eight per cent to EUR 101. There was a marginal decrease in the rate of decline during the third quarter.

Stockholm and Oslo both ended up with drops of 12 per cent for the period up until last September.

Regional cities and towns in SwedenCities and towns in the Swedish regions were in step with general developments. Gothenburg went from occupancy of 68 per cent up until September 2008 to 63 per cent in 2009. So far average prices have stood up well, and thus the major part of the decrease in RevPAR must be ascribed to lower occupancy.

Thus far, Umeå has managed to avoid the downturn. RevPAR up to last September increased by four per cent. The whole of the increase in RevPAR may be ascribed to an increase in occupancy from 53 per cent up until September 2008 to 55 per cent at the end of September 2009.

RevPAR development YTD 2009 RevPAR development third quarter 2009

City occupancy % Average rate % RevPAR % occupancy % Average rate % RevPAR %

New York –8 –25 –31 –4 –25 –28

London 0 –7 –6 2 –11 –9

Paris –6 –11 –16 –1 –11 –11

Brussels –8 –10 –18 –8 –13 –20

Berlin –2 –8 –10 1 –5 –5

Copenhagen –9 –12 –20 –4 –17 –20

Stockholm –4 –8 –12 –1 –12 –13

Oslo –8 –4 –12 –6 –7 –12

Sources: STR Global, SCB, Statistics Norway and Statistics Finland

RevPAR = Revenue per available room. YTD = Year-to-date.

Is the dawn coming – and is it only temporary?

Market information from Pandox

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Pandox market barometerSeptember 2009

The market barometer shows where selected cities lie in the business cycle. Assessment is based on analyses of each location. Allowance is made for macroeconomic developments, developments within the hotel industry, the

business cycle, progress in the hotel market and how well developed and liquid the hotel property market is. Note that hotel business cycles are similar in pattern but different in time.

dEFInInG THE VARIoUS FACETS oF THE HoTEL BUSInESS CYCLE:

GRoWTH Occupancy is rising relatively rapidly and prices are starting to rise. High potential and low risk.

PEAK Occupancy rising/levelling off and prices increasing rapidly. Good potential and low risk gradually rising to high risk.

doWnTURn Occupancy and prices decreasing due to lower demand or overcapacity. Low potential and high risk.

doWnTURn dECREASInG decreasing volumes becoming more stable – continued pressure on prices. Some potential and high risk.

LEVELLInG oFF Occupancy rising with unchanged prices. High potential and decreasing risk.

sweDeNPeAK Umeå and Jönköping

DecliNeMalmö, Lund, Helsingborg, Gothenburg, Stockholm,

Stockholm 5*, Karlstad, Uppsala, Sundsvall and Luleå

GROwTH weAKeNiNG DecliNe

level OuT

iNTeRNATiONAl mARKeTPeAK

DecliNeHelsinki, Oslo, Copenhagen, Berlin, Amsterdam,

Brussels, London, Paris, Vienna, Prague

GROwTH

weAKeNiNG DecliNe

level OuT

All major European cities are suffering downturns. Looking at trends over the rolling twelve months on average up to the end of September 2009, Prague and Vienna are suffering the largest decreases in RevPAR at minus 30 and 23 per cent respectively, most of which is due to declining prices. Paris and Amsterdam are not far behind with decreases in RevPAR of 20 and 21 per cent respectively during the period. In Paris the decrease is above all due to pressure on prices, while in Amsterdam the blame may be spread equally between pressure on prices and lower occupancy. London is the city which has best

withstood the crisis so far with a decrease in RevPAR of eight per cent for the 12-month period, entirely as a result of lower prices.

Turning to the shorter-term trend over the three months from July to September, the picture is somewhat different. Berlin then suffered a five per cent decrease in RevPAR followed by London with a decrease of nine per cent. The worst hit city during this period was Prague with a 31 per cent decrease in RevPAR compared with the same period last year. This decline in RevPAR may mainly be attributed to lower prices.

Comments – International Market

Sources: STR Global, Statistics Norway and Statistics Finland

Comments – SwedenBy far the majority of major Swedish towns and cities are in the lower half of the business cycle curve, with Stockholm 5* seeing the steepest declining trend. During the last rolling twelve months up to the end of September 2009, RevPAR dropped by 12 per cent, most of the decline being attributable to pressure on prices. This is followed by the Municipalities of Stockholm and Gothenburg, where RevPAR decreased by 11 and seven per cent respectively. Other towns and cities have also passed the peak and in most cases both occupancy and prices are decreasing.

However, there are exceptions: Umeå and Jönköping are the large towns which over the rolling twelve months are still on the peak side of the curve, the

main reason being that occupancy is still rising a little while average prices are approximately the same as during the corresponding period last year. Overall, this is resulting in RevPAR continuing to rise.

Turning to a shorter trend over the rolling three months from July to September, we see the downturn in most towns and cities temporarily slowing during the summer. During the period, both Karlstad and Sundsvall saw RevPAR grow compared with the same period last year. In Karlstad this is entirely the result of increased occupancy, while RevPAR growth in Sundsvall may be ascribed to higher prices.

Source: SCB

Market information from Pandox

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… you can now stay at the only seven-star hotel in the world?! The luxury of the Burj al Arab in Dubai surpasses one’s wildest dreams, the service cannot be described and hotel security is superlative. There are only suites, the smallest of 170 square metres and the largest all of 780 square metres! Naturally, butler service is standard. Room costs per day start at SEK 7000 per person, but you can find suites for up to SEK 130,000 per day.

Trends over time

Falling stars – hotels wash away the luxury stampThe utility of hotel classification has declined in importance, and the recession is causing hotels to seek to reduce the value of the certification system even more. The hotels which normally raise their star flags highest – the five-star hotels – are now the ones trying to play down their status. One star more or less, does it make a difference?

In Sweden, Sveriges Hotell- & Restaurangföretagare (SHR) is responsible for hotel classification. In the US and Great Britain, it is the American Automobile Association (AAA) and British Automobile Association (AA) which evaluate and assign stars to hotels. Different countries have different systems. More-over, certain internet booking sites apply their own more or less acceptable certification systems. How can customers evaluate all the information? The Jurys Inn hotel chain carried out a survey of 5000 guests, which showed that eight out of ten do not make use of the star system when selecting hotel. Old-fashioned or not, the industry still clings tightly to the system.

All hotels regardless of classification are suffering from the downturn. However, budget and economy hotels tend to stand up better to recessions, since customers choose less expensive alternatives when times are bad. Luxury and five-star hotels are the most volatile and hardest hit.

The hunt for lower costsHigh price or not, hotels today are doing everything to cut back costs while trying to maintain occupancy. Many are reducing their average prices in pursuit of the declining demand. On the other hand, Stephen Joyce, chief executive of Choice Hotels, is trying to convince the chain’s franchisees that lower prices do not promote demand but they do promote lower earn-ings. Instead, hotels need to be more proactive and creative in their pursuit of customers. People do not stop travelling, but they do become more selective.

Hotel companies have a tendency to ease brand standards when times are hard, and be more discrim-inating when investing. However, rather than ease standards when times are hard, hotels should main-tain or even upgrade their products to safeguard customer loyalty.

DiD yOu KNOw THAT…

… First Hotels is the first hotel chain in Scandinavia to join Global Compact? Under the Global Compact, the chain undertakes to carry out all work in accor-dance with UN principles for human rights, working conditions, the environment and the combating of corruption.

… you can now sleep eco correctly anywhere in the world? In his new guide book “Eco hotels of the world”, author Alex Conti proposes one hundred eco hotels throughout the world. You can also find more information about eco hotels at the following website: www.ecohotelsoftheworld.com.

Sundry facts from variouscorners of the hotel world

Flexible star rating Among those which seem not to bother about customer loyalty are the five-star hotels. Major companies such as Hilton, InterContinental and Starwood have removed a star in their pursuit of lower costs. With a star less they can reduce their levels of service, and also remove more physically related costs. Morning newspaper deliveries to rooms and welcome presents can be discontinued. Less obvious measures such as reducing pool temperatures by a degree or reducing the breakfast buffet choice a little can help hotels.

What do customers have to say? And what kind of impression does this produce? A luxury hotel which turns down service levels at will in order to save money. Is that a way to promote loyal customers? Or new customers perhaps? It has never been cheaper to stay at a luxury hotel. But what is difficult is retaining these customers once the business cycle turns and hotels wish to charge full prices again. And there is a risk of slower recovery when the business cycle turns.

Image costsOn the other hand, one hotel company which is endeavouring to maintain its standards is the Four Seasons. Operators are struggling with owners who wish to downgrade hotels in order to save money. The iconic hotel chain has a high degree of integrity, and shields its image more than the owners would like. The hotel chain spells out your child’s name in the room with chocolates, it has oranges from Valencia in the water containers in the gym and treats all its guests as though they were royalty. Staying at the Four Seasons must be something out-of-the-ordinary. Even after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the company refused to reduce its prices, as this could undermine its brand. They are sticking stubbornly to their traditions.

Who is doing the right thing and who the wrong? Only time will show. Or in the words of Warren Buffett, “Only when the tide goes out do you discover who’s been swimming naked.”Four Seasons Hotel New York will not lower its

standard.

Photo: Saylor, Durston

Market information from Pandox

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News from the Pandox sphere

Radisson SAS is gradually changing to Radisson BLU The change in name involves a small graphic modification which draws a natural line under Radisson’s links with the SAS group, and the chain is now gradually changing the names of its hotels. One hotel which has already changed name is Radisson BLU Arlandia Hotel outside Stockholm. In conjunction with the hotel’s theme month for responsible business, its sales manager Johanna Wessman-Fresnel recently travelled to Russia to hand over winter clothing to a children’s home in Saint Petersburg. An extremely nice gesture!

Yet another hotel which has already changed name is the Radisson BLU Hotel in Basel. In September, the hotel held an opening party for 700 guests to celebrate the completion of renovation and rebuiling work. The lobby, conference rooms and 60 hotel rooms have been renovated with a modern, luxurious design. The hotel’s new bar and restaurant Filini opened this summer and serves classic Italian food. The décor is modern, robust and Italian-inspired.

Renovation of Scandic Järva KrogThe hotel has recently renovated all the bathrooms on four floors and its à la carte restaurant and bar. Welcome along!

Angela Merkel’s government at Hotel Berlin, BerlinOn 26 October, Germany’s coalition government under the leadership of Angela Merkel presented its new coalition accord at Hotel Berlin, Berlin. There was a massive press presence – both the German press and major elements of the international press attended.

Cornelia Kausch, manageress of Hotel Berlin, Berlin welcomed

German Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Eat and and feel well at Crowne Plaza’s new breakfast room!Crowne Plaza Brussels City Centre – “Le Palace” – has renovated the whole of its breakfast room and at the same time it now serves a new breakfast buffet. The décor is light and bright and the breakfast consists of fruit and vegetables, vegetarian wok and chicken wings instead of the traditional menu of sausage, bacon and egg. A healthy breakfast is a good start, and their new motto “Eat well! Feel well!” has been well received by guests.

Touch of France at the newly renovated InterContinental in MontrealThe InterContinental in Montreal has recently undergone a major and successful renovation. The hotel, which is close to the Old City and the large “Palais des Congrès” exhibition hall, threw a large inauguration party for more than 400 people. The new theme at the whole hotel is pervaded by a touch of France – in other words, the Moulin Rouge theme has checked in to stay at the Pandox-owned hotel!

Jazz evenings at the Scandic in AntwerpThe hotel, which recently renovated its meeting facilities, has embarked upon collaboration with US Jazz Club in Antwerp. On the first Thursday of every month, Belgium’s leading jazz musicians along with such legendary figures as Clark Terry, Johnny Griffin and more will play at the Scandic in Antwerp, while guests can take a drink in the bar or enjoy a delicious evening meal.

Female networking at Hotel Berlin, BerlinIn October, a network meeting for women was held with leading executives from the whole of Germany at Hotel Berlin, Berlin. More than 100 women from various sectors such as health, fitness, spa, cosmetics and the hotel industry participated in a variety of workshops and listened to a large number of speakers. There was one session which was particularly popular; “How to communicate with men”.

Copyright: Agentur Bagenz

Restaurant SmoodS at Hotel BLOOM!

SmoodS’ new website! Restaurant SmoodS at Hotel BLOOM! in Brussels now has an updated website – take a look at www.smoods.net.

Art in the pool at the Clarion in ÖstersundThe Clarion Hotel Grand in Östersund is doing something different and providing a new experience for visitors to the hotel swimming pool and relaxation department. A ceiling mounted projector with timer is projecting a series of images on the white pool walls – a highly appreciated and relaxing innovation!

The newly renovated Filini restaurant at the Radisson BLU Hotel in Basel, Switzerland.

Market information from Pandox

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