Rock star suites at Hard Rock San Diego

Sign on San Diego interviewed Matt Greene, general manager of the Hard Rock Hotel in San Diego:

QUESTION: Give us an idea of what one of your 17 Rock Star Suites is like, and who are the types of well-heeled folks who stay there?

ANSWER: Our largest Rock Star Suite is on the 12th floor, and it’s 2,000 square feet. There are two bedrooms, with a wraparound bathroom in one bedroom, and from the tub there’s a cool plasma TV you can see. There’s also a really large parlor area with a wet bar and hip seating area with a Bose sound system and dining room table. The master bedroom has a patio with a huge Jacuzzi tub overlooking the skyline and the harbor and the pool area. It ranges from $2,000 to $5,000 a night.

We’ve had a lot of celebrities and athletes who’ve stayed there and businesspeople who will entertain clients or just people with a lot of cash who want to impress their wife or girlfriend.

QUESTION: Who are some of the more well-known celebrities who have stayed at the hotel? What are some of the more interesting special requests they’ve made?

ANSWER: We get the Black Eyed Peas, and we have the Black Eyed Peas Rock Star Suite, where a portion of the revenue generated goes to their foundation. David Beckham came with his two sons, ate at Nobu, went to SeaWorld and the zoo and had such a good time that (his wife) Victoria came back with the boys. We’ve also had Kristen Stewart, Paris Hilton and Doug Reinhardt, Kim Kardashian and Reggie Bush, Gene Simmons and Wesley Snipes. We once had a celebrity who loved the color pink and requested all the towels and bed linens be replaced with pink ones as well as fresh pink flowers be delivered to her room daily. Some celebrities request very little. All Adam Lambert asked for, when asked what we could provide, was water and 5-Hour Energy drinks.

It’s very cool to have these people, but I don’t like my staff to be star-struck because they just want to be themselves.

QUESTION: The still-battered economy has had a major effect on the hotel industry, but especially so on luxury properties. In San Diego, your hotel is competing with several boutique hotels, including the W, the former Ivy and the Se San Diego. What have you done to adjust to the downturn?

ANSWER: Our goal is to not be a commodity where people are just looking at prices. That’s why we’re so focused on creating a great experience. That said, we’ve done a lot of value-added packages, like the one where we packaged a guest room at a very reasonable rate with one day’s complimentary rental of a Harley-Davidson. There’s another one with a $50 spa credit. So instead of just lowering your rate dramatically, we’re still going to give you value.

We’ve also tried to exceed people’s expectations by creating unexpected delights. For instance, on Elvis’ birthday, we had an Elvis impersonator come in and spend all day in the lobby serving a cake in the shape of Elvis, and in the lobby we have a video wall, where we had Elvis images and videos playing. We get paid to be creative and have fun with our guests. What a cool thing.

How to get bargain rates at luxury hotels

Michelle Higgins had a great piece the other day in The New York Times about how to get hotel bargains:

TO get the best hotel bargains right now, book at the newest place on the block. Opening in a tough economic environment, new hotels are slashing significantly discounted introductory rates even further and extending the deals long after officially opening their doors.

For travelers who can take advantage of the bargains, the discounts are an opportunity to stay at upscale, amenity-laden properties for what they normally might pay for a more moderate hotel without the latest perks.

On Maui, the Honua Kai Resort & Spa, scheduled to open Jan. 28, is offering rooms from $195 — 50 percent off published rates. Near Miami, the Blue, a 240-room resort that opened in September, has extended its opening price of $189 a night through April, down from listed rates of $360. And the Nines, a new Starwood Luxury Collection property in Portland, Ore., is offering rooms for an attention-getting $99 a night for 99 days through mid-April.

“Ninety-nine dollars is not seen today,” said Fred Kleisner, general manager of the Nines. “To me, it’s the Nines saying, ‘Hey, we’re brand-new. Come on and check us out.’ ”

On a recent business trip to New York City, Marie Alexander from California,the chief executive of a software company., stayed at the Thompson LES, a new boutique hotel on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. The listed rates for the rooms, with Sferra bed linens, slate bathrooms with rain showerheads and Kiehl’s toiletries, begin at $375 a night. Ms. Alexander paid $149 — a deal she found on Quikbook.com, which is offering bargains at a range of new hotels in major cities.

I checked out Quikbook.com and it is fabulous! Highly recommended.

See also Hotel Hotsheet on How to get a low rate at a luxury hotel.

Locals in Las Vegas snap up $99/night luxury hotel room deals

I don’t think they’re all using those hotel rooms only for sleeping! from Las Vegas Now:

Since tourists are not coming to Las Vegas like they used to, Las Vegas hotels are trying to win over locals to get business. Many are offering valley residents deep discounts on luxury hotel stays for less than a $100 a night.

That includes the tawny and opulent Trump International Hotel and Tower. They’re hoping people who call Las Vegas home will take advantage of the low prices and spend money to make up where the tourism numbers lag.

Chris and Melanie Lewis live in Las Vegas but last weekend they moved up to the 53rd floor at the Trump. It’s their local get-a-way. “Its been tough for us to get away with work and its seem like we are working a lot more.” Chris Lewis says, “The country’s economic turmoil is making it even harder for everyone to take time off work or spend that extra cash.”

Tourist numbers have been steadily falling and it’s hitting Las Vegas resorts at their bottom line. That’s why hotels like the trump are targeting they people that call Las Vegas home. Angela Nolan, Trump’s Director of Operations says, “Everyone is fighting for the same customer and our ability to provide a aggressive offer for locals will bring them here and bring them back.

W Hotels get sexed up by Clodagh

from Wallpaper, which also has a slideshow (via Planet Pink n Green)

People have more sex in hotel rooms than anywhere else, posits Manhattan interior designer Clodagh, so it makes sense to design with sex in mind. For one of her latest projects, the W Fort Lauderdale, she positioned the beds for a positive feng shui effect and added a strip of light nearby for subtle night-time illumination. The strip is gelled for a soft, flattering glow so that, as she quips, ‘everyone can look absolutely fantastic even if they don’t have a great tan.’

Her design brief was simple. W wanted an ‘urban resort’, a luxury hotel which epitomised the designer brand but spoke to the stunning beachside location. For Clodagh that meant comfort, style, and fun. ‘I think life should be a joy,’ she says, ‘and when you travel you want to have fun.’

As a jury member of Material ConneXion, a resource centre for new and advanced materials, Clodagh was eager to incorporate some of the latest offerings into the Fort Lauderdale project – things like foam aluminums, unique microfibres, resins, and concrete embedded with lenticular mirrors.