NEW YORK, NY – Working on the premise that timing is indeed everything, the New York Hilton Midtown is aiming for night owls. For those who want to make the most of their evening in the Big Apple, New York Hilton Midtown has flipped the traditional hotel check-in hours by inviting guests to check in at midnight and sleep until 3 p.m. with The City that Never Sleeps package.
Whether catching dinner and a Broadway show or spending the evening out enjoying cocktails with girlfriends, The City that Never Sleeps package caters check-in hours to these tourists’ agendas, allowing guests to make the most of their time on property. What are they offering? The City that Never Sleeps package features the following inclusions:
- Guests can start their evening escapades with a midnight check-in and catch some extra ZZZ’s with a 3 p.m. check-out
- Choice of two complimentary beverages at Bridges Bar to kick off the party or enjoy as a nightcap, or a coffee at the Lobby Lounge to recharge after the night’s festivities
- Complimentary luggage storage so guests can hit the ground running
- A 24-hour destination guide, curated by the hotel team, highlighting quintessential NYC activities that run all night, including 24-hour pizza joints, the Staten Island Ferry or checking out the dazzling lights of Times Square
Design-Refresh for Howard Johnson
PARSIPPANY, N.J. – Howard Johnson® by Wyndham completed its largest design-refresh in more than 25 years, giving New Yorkers a “sweet-peek” at its new hotel rooms via a candy-inspired, pop-up event.
A two-day event featured a “HoJo’s Sweet Escape” and “check-in” to the city’s newest accommodations: an all-candy re-creation—complete with marshmallows, jellybeans, licorice and more. The modern design is a playful nod to the nostalgic days of orange roofs, ice cream and family road trips.
“Howard Johnson is one of those brands that is embedded in the hearts and minds of travelers young and old, the world over,” said Clem Bence, vice president of Operations and brand leader for Howard Johnson. “Say ‘HoJo’ and people can’t help but to smile as they think back on the memories they’ve made with us over the decades. Our new look and feel seeks to celebrate our storied past while looking to the future with modern amenities, playful design and a re-imagined aesthetic that is distinctly Howard Johnson.”
Howard Johnson’s re-imagined guestrooms take their inspiration from classic mid-century modern design while adding contemporary and stylish accents that place an emphasis on connectivity. Among other design aspects: a playful, marshmallow wall mirror; sleek vinyl upholstered headboards and custom abstract art showcasing the brand’s iconic gate lodge roofline. Guests will also find a healthy dose of the brand’s signature colors, orange and turquoise, on display throughout the room.
Added Bence, “We wanted this design to do more than just please the eye, we wanted it to spark conversation and delight among our multi-generational guests, thoughtfully marrying the old with the new. The end result is a familiar, nostalgic experience that at the same time is both elevated and entirely new.”
Currently, more than 70 percent of Howard Johnson hotels across the U.S. and Canada have started or completed renovations in line with the new design package with the majority of hotels expected to have completed the refresh by the summer of 2020. Once they do, the brand estimates that Howard Johnson hotel owners will have invested a total of more than $40 million into elevating the on-property experience at more than 200 Howard Johnson hotels across the U.S. and Canada.
Marriott Vows to Eliminate Single-Use Shower Toiletry Bottles
BETHESDA, MD – A 2018 pilot program is going worldwide with the recent announcement by Marriott International to expand its initiative to replace tiny, single-use toiletry bottles of shampoo, conditioner and bath gel in guestroom showers with larger, pump-topped bottles.
To date, the company has already rolled out larger bottles at about 1,000 properties in North America, and now expects most of its other hotels to make the switch by December 2020. When fully implemented across the globe, Marriott International’s expanded toiletry program is expected to prevent about 500 million tiny bottles annually from going to landfills; about 1.7 million pounds of plastic for a 30 percent annual reduction from current amenity plastic usage.
“This is our second global initiative aimed at reducing single-use plastics in just over a year, which underscores how important we believe it is to continuously find ways to reduce our hotels’ environmental impact. It’s a huge priority for us,” said Arne Sorenson, president and CEO of Marriott International. “Our guests are looking to us to make changes that will create a meaningful difference for the environment while not sacrificing the quality service and experience they expect from our hotels.”
Already, more than 20 percent of Marriott International’s more than 7,000 properties now offer larger-pump-topped bottles in guestroom showers, doing away with single-use bottles that often end up in landfills.
The announcement expands Marriott International’s early 2018 initiative to switch single-use shower toiletry bottles to larger bottles with pump dispensers in five brands: Courtyard by Marriott, SpringHill Suites, Residence Inn, Fairfield by Marriott and TownePlace Suites. In addition, four of Marriott International’s brands – Aloft Hotels, Element by Westin, Four Points and Moxy Hotels – previously implemented the pump-dispenser toiletry concept, while a fifth – AC by Marriott – is reportedly on its way to making the change.