Around Town – October/November 2011

(Editor’s Note: Here’s another collection of newsworthy items from our industry members and the South Florida community. HSMAInsider, Julie Wernick)

Southeast Florida:
Best wishes to Valerie Burgess, former Business Development Manager at The Embassy Suites Fort Lauderdale. She recently transferred (in August) to the Embassy Suites in Piscataway, NJ where she is the Corporate Sales Manager. Stop by to say hello if you’re ever up in the northeast.

Ronnie Shoua, the former GM for the Holiday Park Hotel in Deerfield Beach, now has a new company to help hotels "fight" against bed-bugs. The company is using advanced technology with a machine that disperses Cryonite in order to freeze and kill bed bugs. (Cryonite is carbon dioxide snow. It’s the same substance as dry ice, sitting at a very cold temperature of about -108 degrees Fahrenheit). You may contact Ronnie at (954) 918-9573 or check out his website: http://www.bedbugspc.com/

Sandra Edwards, the former Director of Sales of Jungle Island, has left the company. We wish her well and know she will find a new “home” in the very near future.

The Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau reports that September monthly figures showed 22 consecutive months of tourism growth for Broward County. Occupancy rates were 57.7% in September 2011 vs. 53.8% in that month in 2010.

The GFLCVB was in Toronto for their Santa Claus Parade, to launch “Defrost Your Swimsuit” campaign. In addition to the Toronto newspaper, radio and TV advertising and public relations efforts, three beach getaways were offered in an online contest with the Toronto Star. The CVB will also be in NYC and London this winter with the "Defrost Your Swimsuit" campaign.

The Wine Spectator's 2011Award of Excellence was presented to 3030 Ocean Restaurant at the Harbor Beach Marriott Resort & Spa for their fine selection of wines. 3030 Ocean joins the list of elite eating establishments whose wine lists offer interesting selections and appeal to a wide range of wine lovers.

The Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood Int’l Airport announced that American Airlines will begin service to Los Angeles in November and additional Chicago and Dallas service in February; Vision will begin service to Freeport in November; and Southwest will begin service to Milwaukee and Manchester (MA) in February.

The following South Florida hotels/resorts were mentioned in the Condé Nast Traveler’s 2011 Readers’ Choice Awards. Nine South Florida resorts ranked in the “Top 50 Mainland U.S. Resorts”: #18 The Breakers (Palm Beach); #44 Brazilian Court (Palm Beach); #44: Ritz-Carlton Ritz-Carlton (Palm Beach); #83 W South Beach Hotel & Residences; #85 ONE Bal Harbour Resort & Spa; #88: Omphoy Ocean Resort (Palm Beach); #97 Biltmore Hotel (Coral Gables); #102 Ritz-Carlton-Key Biscayne; #121: Ritz-Carlton-Fort Lauderdale;

Seven South Florida hotels were listed in the “Top 200 U.S. Hotels” list: #32: The Setai (Miami Beach); #50: Epic Hotel Miami); #75: Mandarin Oriental-Miami; #106: Four Seasons-Miami; #161: W Fort Lauderdale ; #165: Ritz-Carlton, Miami Beach; and the Seagate Hotel & Spa (Delray Beach).

For the Top 50 Small U.S. Hotels, South Florida had three mentions in the “Top 50 Small US Hotels” category: at #14: Pillars Hotel, Fort Lauderdale; #15: The Tides, Miami Beach; and #23: Sundy House, Delray Beach.

Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants will reopen the Surfcomber in Miami Beach on Dec. 1 after a multimillion-dollar renovation of the 63-year-old art deco hotel.

The St. Regis Bal Harbour Resort will open on Jan. 19, in affluent Bal Harbour, Fla.

Hersha Hospitality is buying the Courtyard Miami Beach Oceanfront. The 263-room Art Deco hotel is at 3925 Collins Avenue and originally opened as the Cadillac. In 2004, following a renovation, it reopened as the only Marriott-franchised hotel on Miami Beach. The property has approval for adding 93 rooms in a new tower. The company also plans on expanding meeting space and parking. Construction on the additions should start in 2012.

Southwest Florida:

The Gasparilla Inn & Club in Boca Grande and the Tortuga Beach Club Resort on Sanibel Island earned spots on the annual list of “Top 150 Large U.S. Mainland Resorts” compiled by Condé Nast Traveler magazine from its Readers’ Choice Awards survey.

The November 2011 issue of Golf Digest, ranked the Gasparilla Inn & Club in Boca Grande #37 on its list of the “75 Best Golf Resorts in North America”, and #2 within the state of Florida.

The Lee County Port Authority has been honored with three recent awards at both the state and international levels. First, the Florida Public Relations Association presented the port authority with an Award of Distinction in the 2011 Golden Image Awards, for statewide recognition of its internal United Way campaign. Second, the Florida Airports Council honored the port authority with the General Aviation Airport Environmental Excellence Award for Page Field’s Pollution Prevention Program and its commitment to voluntary prevention measures during the last seven years. Lastly, RSW was honored with an award from Airports Council International – North America (ACI-NA) in the 2011 Excellence in Marketing and Communications Contest for its “Fly Me to the Moon” art exhibit brochure.

The Lee County Visitor & Convention Bureau (VCB) announced that the fiscal year completed in September (October 2010 – September 2011) represents the highest bed tax collection on record with revenue of $24.2 million.

During the month of September 2011, The Beaches of Fort Myers & Sanibel hosted 252,000 visitors, who spent $95 million. Visitors staying in paid accommodations contributed $68.2 million to the total – a 1.8 percent increase year-over-year. Total visitor expenditures for calendar year-to-year continued to show improvement over last year with a 12.7 percent gain. Average occupancy rate rose 4.7 percent year-over-year for September. RevPAR was up 2.0 percent from September 2010 to September 2011.

During September 2011, 351,881 passengers traveled through Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW), a decrease of 6.1 percent compared to September 2010. Year-to-date, passenger traffic is up 2.7 percent from the same period last year
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To submit items for future blog columns, please send info to jwfranklin1@gmail.com Best, Julie Wernick, HSMAInsider