Starwood's Cyber Monday online promotion

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!  A big thank you to all you readers and followers.  Here’s wishing you have a great break with friends and family.  Gobble gobble!

Now how about a Starwood deal?

Starwood is quickly positioning itself as a web savvy company.  In addition to its plethora of social media tools and sites, Starwood is now offering a special promotion for Cyber Monday.  For those who aren’t familiar with what that is, think of Black Friday but in the context of online shopping from your office desk next Monday.  Why should the brick and mortar retailers have all the fun?

Here’s the scoop on the online Starwood Cyber Monday promo . . .

For just three days starting on Monday, November 30 and ending on December 2, book a stay at one of the 50 Starwood resorts at savings of up to 45% on stays from Jan. 1 through April 30, 2010.  Here’s the link that you want to keep handy for next Monday:  http://www.starwoodexclusiveoffers.com/cybermonday-preview

The cancellation policy looks tough on this Cyber Monday promo though.  It looks like there’s no refund on cancelled reservations so make sure you’re definitely going or get trip insurance.

Just in case the 50 or so upscale Starwood resorts  just aren’t what you’re looking for, there’s always Hotels.com and its holiday sale.  Hotels.com was perhaps the industry pioneer of marketing online promotions specifically for Cyber Monday and Black Friday.  For the third year straight the website will hold online sales on both dates that will include over 200 properties in more than 100 locations selling at 50% off regular rates.

Just saw that Expedia is also having a Black Friday / Cyber Monday sale.  Get $25 off a hotel booking of $150 or more, book before Nov 30, and travel by Dec 21.

Siden 15. oktober har Choice vært utestengt fra de to store hotellbookingsløsningene Expedia og Hotels.com.

Uenighet om avtalevilkår førte til at verdens største bookingselskap dumpet Choice, som er verdens sjette største hotellkjede. Choice Hotels Scandinavia har betegnet Expedias handling som uprofesjonell.

Det er gjennom en avtale Choice Hotels International i USA har hatt med Expedia, at Choice i Skandinavia har vært tilstede på bookingsplattformene til Expedia og Hotels.com.

Etter bruddet har en rekke mindre hoteller med franchiseavtale med Choice, ønsket en direkteavtale med Expedia.

Choice Hotels Scandinavia, som styres av investoren Petter Stordalen, får rundt én prosent av totalomsetningen sin gjennom bookingløsningene til Expedia.
 
Torsdag 22. oktober var salgsdirektør Sven Jensen i London. Under sitt opphold der hadde han møter med Expedia.

Dagen før møtet sa kommersiell direktør Roar Ingdal i Choice til Reiselivsavisen.no at det kunne være aktuelt for den skandinaviske delen av hotellkjeden å inngå en egen avtale med Expedia, uavhengig av Choice Hotels International.

- Hva gjorde Sven Jensen hos Expedia i London, Ingdal?

- Vi har fra tid til annen møter med Expedia for å oppsummere vårt forretningsforhold og for å informere om våre produkter, sier Ingdal.

Han sier møtet ikke kom i stand etter at Choice i Skandinavia ble dumpet av Expedia.

- Men, dere har sagt at en direkteavtale vurderes. Var det et tema på møtet?

- Choice Hotels International er de som har dialogen med Expedia om en ny avtale, og det er de som fører forhandlingene. Når det er sagt, så må jeg si at vi klarer oss utmerket uten en avtale med Expedia, sier Ingdal.

I går skrev Reiselivsavisen.no at også Best Western International har takket nei til en sentral avtale med Expedia, fordi vilkårene er for dårlige.

Men, kjedens hoteller er ikke kastet ut fra Expedia, da bookingselskapet allerede har direkteavtaler med medlemshotellene til Best Western.

Hotellbestillingsportalene Expedia og Hotels.com kastet ut Choice fra sine systemer nylig, etter at verdens sjette største hotellkjede nektet å godta en ny forretningsavtale med Expedia.

I Choice er man oppgitt over Expedias framferd og måten de dikterer sine krav i forhandlinger på. Nå ser det ut til at Choice kan ha fått en mektig alliert med seg mot Expedia.

Best Western-kjeden har aldri hatt en sentral avtale med Expedia, men hvert enkelt hotell har inngått sine egne avtaler direkte, noe Best Western sentralt har støttet.

I motsetning til Choice, så driver ikke Best Western egne hoteller. Kjeden er en medlemsorganisasjon for selvstendige hoteller. De kan benytte Best Westerns merkenavn, reservasjonssystemer, sentralt forhandlede avtaler, markedsføring og kvalitetskontroller.

For en stund tilbake startet Best Western forhandlinger med Expedia for om mulig få på plass en sentral avtale hotellkjeden kunne anbefale sine medlemsbedrifter.

Daglig leder Hege Ramm i Best Western Hotels Norway var i forrige uke i USA i møte med sine kolleger internasjonalt, og ble orientert om forhandlingene med Expedia, som nå har strandet.

- Best Western har valgt å takke nei til en sentral avtale med Expedia og Hotels.com, på grunn av betingelsene vi ble forespeilet i avtaleutkastet, sier Ramm til Reiselivsavisen.no.

Hvor mange Best Western-hoteller i Norge som har avtale med Expedia har ikke Ramm oversikt over. Det er opp til hver enkelt hotelleier å inngå avtaler på egenhånd. Ingen Best Western-hoteller er stengt ute nå, slik Choice er, siden avtalene er lokalt forhandlet.

- På det internasjonale møtet var det enstemmighet om at vi ikke kunne akseptere de betingelsene vi ble tilbud, og da er ikke Expedia interessant for oss, sier Ramm.

Hun berømmer samtidig Expedia for å ha vært tidlig ute med gode reserverasjonssystemer på internett, men at kunnskapen om dette har blitt mye bedre i de enkelte kjedene de siste årene, og at man derfor kanskje ikke er så avhengig av Expedia fremover.

For noen dager siden blokkerte Expedia og Hotels.com muligheten for sine kunder å bestille rom hos Choice, verdens sjette største hotellkjede.

Den uventede vendingen fra Expedia og Hotels.com kom etter forhandlingsbrudd mellom de to partene. Choice ble tatt på sengen grepet fra hotellformidlingsselskapet.

- Vi ble veldig overrasket over at det ble brudd i forhandlingene og over hva som skjedde i etterkant, sier kommersiell direktør Roar Ingdal i Choice Hotels Scandinavia til Reiselivsavisen.no.

Han synes Expedia har opptrådt uprofesjonelt.

- De har ikke akkurat tilrettelagt for en bedre forhandlingsklima fremover, sier Ingdal.

Samtidig understreker han at bruddet med Expedia og Hotels.com ikke har så stor betydning for den skandinaviske delen av Choice-familien.

- Vår andel av omsetningen som går gjennom Expedia og Hotels.com er liten, drøyt én prosent. Og 70 prosent av kundene vi får gjennom bookingtjenesten er nordiske gjester. De kan kjøpe rom rett fra våre sider i stedet, sier Ingdal.

Expedia og Hotels.com skal ha krevd å få tilgang til all kapasiteten til Choice. De krevde også å selge til laveste pris, også det siste rommet.

- Vi synes det ikke var noen god idé. Da hadde vi overlatt det meste til en tredjepart, og vi kunne ikke inngått egne eksklusive avtaler med våre forretningskunder, sier Ingdal.

- Kan det være aktuelt for Choice Hotels Scandinavia å inngå en egen avtale med Expedia og Hotels.com, uavhengig av hva Choice Hotels International gjør?

- Ja, det er mulig det, og noe vi vurderer, men ingenting er avklart, sier Ingdal.

Hotellgiganten Choice Hotels International er kastet ut fra de to store hotellbookingsystemene Expedia.com og Hotels.com.

Årsaken er at Choice ikke ville godta nye vilkår fra formidlingsselskapet i forbindelse med reforhandling av kontrakten.

Da Choice for noen dager siden nektet å la seg diktere av kravene til Expedia, gikk det bare timer før hotellene deres ble borte fra de to populære nettbestillingssidene.

Disputten med Choice Hotels International rammer også Choice’ operasjoner i Norge og Skandinavia, som er eid av Petter A. Stordalen og som har en franchiseavtale med Choice Hotels International

Et søk på Hotels.com og deres søstertjeneste Expedia, gir null treff på Choice’ rom. Også hos flyselskapet Norwegian, som formidler hotellrom gjennom en avtale med Expedia, har Choice forsvunnet som et tilbud.

Forsøker man ser derimot på Hotell.no og Cityhotels.no får man treff. Brinchmann anbefaler de som ønsker å reservere rom hos Choice, å bruke deres nettsider direkte på adressen www.choicehotels.no.

Choice Hotels International er verdens sjette største hotellkonsern, med nesten 6000 hoteller på verdensbasis.

Auch die deutsche Hotellerie bleibt vom weltweiten Preissturz nicht verschont, zur Freude aller Deutschlandtouristen. Laut dem original Hotel Price Index (HPI) von Hotels.com sanken die deutschen Hotelpreise im ersten Halbjahr 2009 um 14 Prozent, verglichen mit dem gleichen Zeitraum 2008. Um die Belegungsrate auch während der Konjunkturschwäche möglichst stabil zu halten, fiel der durchschnittliche Zimmerpreis während des Untersuchungszeitraums hierzulande auf 86 Euro pro Zimmer und Nacht.

Düsseldorf verliert, Freiburg gewinnt
Von der Preisreduktion im ersten Halbjahr 2009 am stärksten betroffen, waren Düsseldorf und Dresden. Hier sanken die Preise im Vergleich zum Vorjahr um 33 Prozent sowie 21 Prozent, auf 88 Euro am Rhein und 71 Euro an der Elbe. Viele Städte mussten einen Preisverlust um mehr als zehn Prozent hinnehmen, so auch bei Touristen beliebte Städte wie München (minus 17 Prozent), Leipzig (minus 16 Prozent) und Berlin (minus 14 Prozent). In Stuttgart (minus 14 Prozent) und Frankfurt (minus zehn Prozent) zeigte sich eine ähnliche Entwicklung, in Hannover dagegen war der Preisrückgang um nur drei Prozent vergleichsweise gering. Die Hoteliers in Mannheim hielten das Preisniveau des Vorjahres, der einzige positive Trend wurde in Freiburg verzeichnet. Wenn auch nur mit einem Plus von drei Prozent im Vergleich zum gleichen Zeitraum 2008, konnte die Freiburger Hotellerie ihre Preise von 89 Euro auf durchschnittlich 92 Euro anheben.

Hannoveraner Hotels am teuersten, Dortmunder am günstigsten Von wegen München, Hamburg oder Berlin, die beliebtesten deutschen Städtereiseziele müssen nicht immer die teuersten sein. Laut HPI war die für Reisende teuerste Stadt während des Untersuchungszeitraums Hannover. Mit 114 Euro pro Hotelzimmer und Nacht setzte sich die niedersächsische Landeshauptstadt und Messemetropole an die Spitze des deutschen Preisbarometers. Platz zwei und drei belegten Frankfurt (107 Euro) und Nürnberg (106 Euro), gefolgt von Köln (105 Euro), Wiesbaden und Stuttgart (je 97 Euro) sowie Hamburg (96 Euro). Berlin bleibt weiterhin eine der günstigsten deutschen Städte für Hotelgäste, in der deutschen Hauptstadt wurden nur 76 Euro pro Zimmer und Nacht fällig. Schlusslicht der Tabelle ist Dortmund, mit einem durchschnittlichen Übernachtungspreis von 63 Euro.

Hotelpreise in Deutschland auf dem niedrigsten Niveau seit 2004 Derzeit sind Hotelzimmer hierzulande günstiger, als im Jahr 2004. Der signifikante Preisrückgang auf 86 Euro pro Zimmer und Nacht markiert das niedrigste Preisniveau deutscher Hotels seit Beginn der HPI-Auswertung im Januar 2004. Damit liegt Deutschland während des Untersuchungszeitraums im europäischen Vergleich im untersten Drittel des Hotelpreisrankings. Teuerstes der drei deutschsprachigen Länder als auch ganz Europas war die Schweiz, mit einem durchschnittlichen Übernachtungspreis von 139 Euro pro Zimmer. Obwohl auch in der Eidgenossenschaft das Preisniveau um zwölf Prozent sank, mussten Hotelgäste hier am meisten für ihre Übernachtungen berappen. Österreich-Reisende dagegen wurden zwischen Januar und Juni 2009 mit nur 87 Euro im Durchschnitt zur Kasse gebeten, ganze 23 Prozent weniger, als zwölf Monate zuvor.

Den HPI zum kostenlosen Download: http://deutsch.hotels.com/presse/hotel-price-index.html

Kendal has been named as the UK’s fastest growing nanobreak destination, by leading hotel booking site Hotels.com. The Lake District town has seen a 650% rise in searches for one-night stays – or nanobreaks – so far this year compared to the same period last year.

Across the UK searches for nanobreaks were up by 46% in the first five months of this year – showing the nanobreak concept has become increasingly popular as the year has gone on.

Scarborough was the next fastest growing nanobreak destination with searches up 200%, followed by Torquay (136%), Bath (130%) and Brighton (106%).

Other destinations to make the UK nanobreak top ten were Edinburgh (up 70%), Bournemouth (up 57%), Newquay (up 50%), Llandudno (up 50%) and Blackpool (up 30%).

10 fastest-growing nanobreak holiday destinations in UK

Alison Couper, Communications Director for Hotels.com, said: “It is interesting to see the growing popularity of nanobreaks in the UK. With a great summer forecast and hotel prices in the UK at a record low, now is the time to get out and enjoy what the UK has to offer.

“A break for your normal routine, however short, can bring enormous benefits. It is with this in mind that we’re launching a new competition to promote the nanobreak concept.

“Travellers can enter a short nanolog – or miniblog – of their break and be in with the chance of winning a longer break to Rio.”

Entries to the nanobreak competition can be submitted via Twitter, Flickr or YouTube and the top entry will win a 3-night stay in Rio de Janeiro and return flights with TAP Portugal. For more information go to http://www.hotels.co.uk/hotel-deals/nanobreak.

Photo Credit: foshie

Short Breaks | Scarborough Hotels | Malton Hotel | Scarborough Self Catering | Wedding Venue Scarborough | Conferences Scarborough

Den norske hotellformidleren Cityhotels.no utvider sin database med 1350 nye hoteller.

Flere nye merkevarer kommer til, blant annet Hiltonkjeden med sine 514 hoteller.

- Vi har tilbudt noen Hilton-hoteller tidligere, men ikke alle. Nå som vi får med hele denne kjeden, kan vi tilby våre kunder et bedre, og mer komplett tilbud med flere romkategorier, sier daglig leder Andreas Svensson i Cityhotels.no.

Blant de andre hotellkjedene som nå tilgjengelige hos det norske hotellformidlingsselskapet er Doubletree og Embassy Suites Hotels, også de en del av Hilton-familien.

Cityhotels.no tilbyr rom ved 50 000 hoteller verden over og drives av European Travel Group AS. Selskapet markedsføres i Norge og Sverige, i direkte konkurranse med større aktører som Hotels.com.

Voici la bande-Annonce de l’adaptation cinématographique du jeu Legend of Zelda.

-

Cette bande-annonce a été mise en ligne sur le site IGN, il y a un an exactement. Plusieurs y ont cru, mais ce n’était qu’un poisson d’avril!

Le 1er avril, il faut faire attention à ce que l’on lit sur les blogues et sites Internet. Plusieurs publient des fausses nouvelles… Quels seront les meilleurs poissons d’avril de 2009?

Si vous en voyez, tenez-moi au courant!

***

Mon ami Steve Tilley via Twitter a révélé l’un des premiers poissons d’avril publié sur Torrentfreak «Warner Bros aquires The Pirate Bay».

***

Entoine en donne quelques-uns sur son site Yourteube également, dont :

-les pages à l’envers sur Youtube

-une sorte d’imprimante à burritos sur Clubic, le Hatch-Peï (prononcer à haute voix!) Next Food!

-La navigation grâce aux expressions faciales (de opera software):

- Google et sa navigation en 3D grâce à des lunettes 3D imprimables! (je me demande comment on voit à travers du papier )

- L’annonce du rachat de Palm par Microsoft sur Mobifrance

***

Une liste des 100 meilleurs poissons d’avril est publié sur museumofhoaxes.

(découvert grâce à Michelle Blanc sur Twitter)

***

Le journal britannique The Guardian annonce sa fermeture, ou plutôt son transfert sur Twitter!

Le comédien Dane Cook annonce sur Twitter qu’il sera un vampire dans le prochain film Twilight.

UPDATE:

Wired annonce un plan d’affaire pour Twitter.

UPDATE 2 :

(merci  ElaineElle pour ces liens!)

Rue 89 annonce avoir trouvé le 4e tome de Millenium et qu’il sera publié gratuitement sur le net!

Expedia annonce des vols sur Mars pour aussi peu que 99$!

UPDATE 3:

Kodak met sur le marché une caméra qui s,attache à nos lunettes

Woot a mis en vente un bag of crap (écoulé) à 3$ avec des frais de livraison de 1 000 000$). La description vaut la peine d’être lue!

- Le site (ou le add-on de Firefox) Bug me not, qui donne des Login pour les sites qui exigent d’être inscrits,  demande maintenant un Login entrer sur son site!

-Woopra dévoile une nouvelle version de leur site qui permettra d’espionner les internautes via leurs webcams.

-PSS explique le fonctionnement de SMART-ASS, un détecteur de mensonges dédié aux agents des centres d,appel

UPDATE 5:

-On peut maintenant réserver des chambres sur la Lune via Hotels.com

-Topify affirme être poursuivi par Fedex

UPDATE 6:

L’ONU quitte ses bureaux de New York pour s’installer à Montréal, selon PopulationData.

(vincentabry et ElaineElle sur Twitter)

UPDATE 7:

Je dois vraiment me mettre au travail! Et je viens de découvrir que Techcrunch et Liberation font des bonnes récapitulations des poissons d’avril! Je vous invite donc à les visiter pour en voir d’autres!

]]> http://hoteldealsandotherstuff.wordpress.com/2009/03/26/what-is-a-nano-break-credit-crunch-creates-new-one-night-holiday-trend/ Thu, 26 Mar 2009 14:34:41 +0000 Mark http://hoteldealsandotherstuff.wordpress.com/2009/03/26/what-is-a-nano-break-credit-crunch-creates-new-one-night-holiday-trend/

Bournemouth UK, the most popular destination for Nano Breakers

According to research by Hotels.com, an increasing number of Britons are booking one-night holidays this year – a trend that the industry is calling “nano” breaks.

This new trends seems to have been driven by travel loving Brits determined not to give up their short breaks in spite of the current economic downturn.

The figures collated by hotels.com, and published on The Daily Telegraph’s website, show a 29% increase in the number of Britons searching for one-night breaks in January – compared to the same month last year – with searches for single-night, weekend stays up 140% in Brighton, 82% in Edinburgh and 143% in Bournemouth. Single-night breaks in London were also up by 20%.

Enquiries about single-night stays had also increased overseas with both Venice and Marrakesh up by more than 80%

Alison Couper, communications director for Hotels.com, is quoted in on The Telegraph’s website as saying “All of our research shows that people see holidays as a right not a luxury and the rise in searches for nano-breaks is further evidence of holidaymakers’ determination to keep travelling.  The simple act of going on holiday for just a single night is relaxing and a change from the stresses and strains of life.“

The growing interest in Nano Breaks has been mirrored by many people cutting the length of their annual vacations according to British operators – and in some cases Summer holidays are being axed altogether.

How searches for Nano Breaks have increased according to Hotels.com
Percentage increase between January 2008 and January 2009.

Bournemouth 143%
Brighton 140%
Copenhagen 41%
Edinburgh 82%
London 30 %
Marrakesh 86%
Nice 40%
Rome 47%
Venice 84%

Photo Credit: JeDi58

Short Breaks | Hotel Deals | Scarborough Hotel | Malton Hotel | Scarborough Self Catering | Wedding Venue Scarborough | Conferences Scarborough

According to figures released this week by Hotels.com, UK hotel room prices fell 12% to £93 per night in the last three months of 2008, compared with the same period in 2007

In contrast British tourists are having to pay more for accommodation at many popular overseas destinations, supporting suggestions that Brits will turn their backs on destinations such as Spain and are instead planning to spend this years holidays in the UK.

But it’s not just Spain where prices are soaring, one night in a Swiss hotel rose, on average, to £120 – an increase of 22% – and France, Holland and Greece saw rises of 11%, 14% and 15% respectively.

Figures for individual cities showed average London hotel room rates dipping 12%, Edinburgh prices falling from £99 to £95 and Belfast room rates down 17% to £83.  Bucking the trend was Cardiff, where average prices rose slightly from £87 at the end of 2007 to £93 at the end of last year.

The most expensive city at the end of 2008 was Moscow with rooms costing an average of £207 a night, although the biggest percentage increase was in Rio de Janeiro, where room rates rose 63% to £164 at the end of last year.

Other destinations with rising prices included, Geneva up 34% to £136, Zurich up 20% to £119, Washington DC up 18% to £115 per night, Paris rising 13% to £112 and Munich up 10% to £93.

The least expensive major city at the end of last year was the Latvian capital Riga where average rooms cost just £50 a night.

Hotels.com worldwide president David Roche said: “Our report shows that hoteliers around the world are being forced to cut rates to fill their rooms.

“Due to weak sterling, UK travellers will have to work a bit harder to find the bargains but there are still plenty to be had.

“For travellers from any part of the world, this is a great time to explore: travel has not been this cheap since January 2004.”

“The indications are that 2009 will continue to be a good year for travellers. If sterling strengthens, UK travellers will start enjoying the great savings our European and US counterparts are currently experiencing.”

Overall, the average price for a night in a UK hotel fell to £93 in the last three months of 2008.

Photo Credit: Jasper180969

UK Breaks | Hotel Deals | Scarborough Hotel | Royal Hotel Scarborough | Malton Hotel | Scarborough Self Catering | Wedding Venues | Hotels Yorkshire

For those who don’t know, Yapta.com is an online travel website that monitors airfare for travelers from most of the major domestic and international airlines.  Since launching its initial airfare tracking service in May 2007, Yapta has alerted over 600,000 travelers to more than $160 million in potential savings.

Just last week, the website introduced a hotel rate tracking service that allows customers to track and compare rates for roughly 110,000 domestic and international hotels.  In general, Yapta lets you choose your preferred hotels and then sign up for automatic e-alerts if that hotel’s rate drops for your specified set of dates.

Of the 9 Starwood brands, Westin, W, Sheraton, and Four Points have properties on Yapta.  The brands that don’t have properties listed are St. Regis, Luxury Collection, Le Meridien, Element, and Aloft.  Other hotel companies found on Yapta include Four Seasons, Fairmont, Hilton, and Hyatt, among many others.

The travel and tourism industry was one of the early front runners in social media applications for business.  Dare I say even … an innovator?  Think back to sites like TripAdvisor and Hotels.com.  These were sites that really got people talking about where to go and what to avoid while traveling.  After all, social media is supposed to be social, isn’t it?  Now there are new ones on the scene like IgoUgo, and there’s no sign of this trend slowing. 

Other forms of social media, like Facebook and Twitter, are now solidly in the business world.  But does everyone really know that?  It’s easy for those of us using these applications on a daily basis to think so.  But I’m not so sure.

There are many examples of large attractions, destinations, and travel service providers making full use of social media like Facebook and Twitter.  Just look at Southwest Airlines and Six Flags, to name just two.  But how many small town chambers of commerce and convention and visitor bureaus (CVBs) do you think are doing this?  In Texas at least, the answer is not near enough.

Am I wrong?  If you know of any small to mid-sized Texas towns and cities that are using social media as a marketing strategy, please correct me.  If I’m right, why do you think this is happening?

I think it’s a combination of things:

1. social media is the great unknown, 
2. people marketing destinations are afraid they’ll get negative comments, 
3. they don’t know how to respond to negative comments if they get them, and 
4. they think it’s only for cities with a few more zeros on the end of their budget.

Chris Brogan had a great post today about a specific segment of the travel industry – hotels.  Chris discusses several no-nonsense ways that hotels can succeed in this crazy economy by building relationships with business travelers.  However, the reason why he wrote the post was sparked by a Twitter search he did on where people were staying for SXSW in Austin, TX.

Turns out, a lot of people were asking for lodging.  Chris wondered why hotels weren’t monitoring the same Twitter search and sending out rate quotes directly to SXSW attendees via Twitter.  Makes a lot of sense, doesn’t it?  What were those hotels with availability doing when they should have been listening and responding?

This is stuff the little guys can do.  Easily.  Think of all the ways a small CVB could use Twitter.  Here are just a few: promotions, weekend packages, street closures, festival updates, new attractions … I could go on and on.

What are some other uses?  Why aren’t we seeing more of this?

Looks like no one was paying attention when big shot ABC was placing this ad for poor hotels.com.  Check out this video clip and see what happens…

Hotels Hot Coupons

The following message i got from the http://www.dailynewdeals.com

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We have hot deals to help generate sales including:

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Press release alert from Scott Rains of Rolling Rains Report

SETTLEMENT REACHED TO IMPROVE ACCESS TO HOTELS.COM AND EXPEDIA RESERVATION SERVICES FOR DISABLED TRAVELERS

OAKLAND, Calif. – Under a settlement announced today, Hotels.com and Expedia.com, two of the world’s leading online travel companies, have agreed to add features to their online travel reservation systems so that millions of travelers with disabilities can use their online services to search for and reserve hotel rooms that have the accommodations they need.

Plaintiffs in the California lawsuit Smith v. Hotels.com L.P. were represented by the public interest law firms of Disability Rights Advocates (DRA) and Public Justice, and a leading class action law firm in Mill Valley, Calif., Chavez & Gertler LLP.

As part of the settlement, Hotels.com and Expedia.com will gather information about hotels’ accessibility features, and will then incorporate that information into their websites so that travelers can both search for hotels with rooms that offer the particular accommodations they need, and make special requests online to book those accessible rooms. Each special request will be given individual attention by a trained customer service representative, who will work with the customer to accommodate his or her needs. These new features will be rolled out later this year.

“For years, travelers with disabilities have been unable to take advantage of the convenience and low cost options of booking hotel rooms online,” said plaintiff Bonnie Lewkowicz. “Now, for the first time, I will be able to reserve a hotel room online that meets my needs, just like anyone else.”

Lewkowicz and co-plaintiff Judith Smith are members of AXIS Dance Company, a not-for-profit company of professional dancers with and without disabilities based in Oakland, Calif. Ms. Smith and Ms. Lewkowicz both rely on wheelchairs for mobility.

“By adding website features to meet the needs of disabled consumers, Hotels.com and Expedia are showing that they are true leaders in the hospitality industry” added Victoria Ni , a staff attorney at Public Justice, a public interest law firm specializing in cutting-edge litigation nationwide. “We hope and believe that other online travel agencies will follow their lead.”

In 2006, American online consumer travel sales generated $79 billion. For American travelers, the Internet is an indispensable resource for planning trips and booking lodgings and transportation.

Adults with disabilities spend over $10 billion annually on travel, and almost half of them consult the Internet to support their travel needs.

Wheelchair users need wide doorways and grab bars and accessible bathrooms. People with visual or hearing impairments also need accessible features, such as Braille signage or a text telephone.

“This settlement ushers in a new era in the online travel industry. A wheelchair user who reserves a hotel room online will no longer have to worry that she or he literally might not be able to enter the room after they arrive,” said Kevin Knestrick, an attorney with DRA, a non-profit law center based in Berkeley, Calif., that specializes in high-impact lawsuits on behalf of people with disabilities.

No damages were sought in the case, which was filed in the California Superior Court for Alameda County.

For more information about the lawsuit and settlement, please go to Public Justice’s website, at www.publicjustice.net, or to DRA’s website, at www.dralegal.org.

###

Public Justice is America’s public interest law firm, supported by – and calling on — a nationwide network of more than 3,000 of the nation’s top lawyers to pursue precedent-setting and socially significant litigation. It has a wide-ranging litigation docket in the areas of consumer rights, worker safety, civil rights and liberties, toxic torts, environmental protection, and access to the courts. Public Justice is the principal project of the Public Justice Foundation, a not-for-profit membership organization headquartered in Washington, DC, with a West Coast office in Oakland, California. The Public Justice web site address is www.publicjustice.net.
Disability Rights Advocates is a non-profit law firm based in Berkeley, California, whose mission is to protect and advance the civil rights of people with disabilities through high-impact litigation, advocacy and education. Disability Rights Advocates is a national leader in protecting the rights of people with all types of disabilities, including mobility, sensory, mental health and learning disabilities.

Now it makes me wonder if it will translate over this side of the pond – what about hotels.co.uk and expedia.co.uk – will they have to follow suit? What if I book hotels in London using hotel.com? We will have to test them later.

Right now, Duke is beating poor Maryland by 40+ points.

Playing at Duke is rough.

Please forgive me for making a boo-boo in my last post. I lamented that the Hoyas have a losing record in the Big East. In fact, the record stands at 3-3. I forgot that we had beaten Providence College. Tomorrow afternoon we play Seton Hall at 2:00. The game will be broadcast on MASN and AM 980.

Today is the feast day of the gentle bishop, St. Francis de Sales. If you would like to have a spiritual life, and you are looking for a good, straightforward book to teach you how to do it, look no further.

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Prayer Works Ministry/MF1 – We offer special prayer for your special needs

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Quelle: Pressemitteilung hotels.com, 11. Dezember 2008

Hotelgäste, die zwischen Juli und September 2008 ein Hotel in Köln gebucht haben, mussten im Durchschnitt 14 Prozent mehr zahlen, als im 3. Quartal 2007. Mit einem durchschnittlichen Übernachtungspreis von 119 Euro war die Domstadt zusammen mit Frankfurt am Main während des Untersuchungszeitraums die teuerste Hotelstadt Deutschlands. Das ist eines der Ergebnisse des aktuellen Hotel Price Index (HPI) von Hotels.com, der die Entwicklung der weltweiten Hotelpreise im 3. Quartal 2008 untersuchte.

Die Analyse zeigt jedoch auch, dass die Hotelpreise in Deutschland im Jahresvergleich stabil geblieben sind. Mit einem Preisanstieg von lediglich einem Prozent im Vergleich zum Vorjahr auf einen durchschnittlichen Übernachtungspreis von 101 Euro pro Zimmer und Nacht gehörte Deutschland auch im 3. Quartal 2008 zu den günstigen Reisezielen Europas.

Hotelnächte an Rhein und Main am teuersten
Überdurchschnittlich hoch waren die Hotelpreise in den Messestädten Köln und Frankfurt. Mit 119 Euro pro Zimmer und Nacht setzten sich die beiden Städte an die Spitze des deutschen Rankings und erlebten einen Preisanstieg um 14 beziehungsweise zwölf Prozent. Der vergleichsweise starke Anstieg kann als Vorschau auf das kommende Jahr gewertet werden, in dem die Anzahl bedeutender Messen in beiden Städten stark zunehmen wird. “Um einen rasanten Preisanstieg im kommenden Jahr zu vermeiden, haben die Hoteliers in Köln und Frankfurt bereits jetzt reagiert und das Niveau angehoben”, so Mirko Behnert, Head of Strategy von Hotels.com.

Köln rauf, Düsseldorf runter
Gewinner des Preisanstiegs in Köln während des 3. Quartals 2008 aber war Düsseldorf. Im Jahresvergleich fiel das Preisniveau hier um zwölf Prozent, auf durchschnittlich 105 Euro pro Zimmer und Nacht. Viele Reisende wollten in der Nähe Kölns bleiben und nutzten gleichzeitig den Preisunterschied, indem sie ein Hotel in Düsseldorf buchten.

Nach den beiden Spitzenreitern platzierte sich München auf Platz zwei der teuersten Hotelstädte Deutschlands, mit einem durchschnittlichen Übernachtungspreis von 116 Euro pro Zimmer und Nacht, gefolgt von Stuttgart und Hannover, mit je 109 Euro für die gleiche Leistung. Für Hannoverbesucher bedeutete dies ebenfalls einen Anstieg um 14 Prozent, neben Köln die deutlichste Verteuerung in Deutschland, in Stuttgart sanken die Preise um vier Prozent. Auch vier Prozent weniger als im gleichen Quartal des Vorjahres zahlten Hotelgäste an der Elbe. Mit 101 Euro pro Zimmer und Nacht sicherte man sich sein Hotelbett in Hamburg.

Berlin weiterhin unter 100 Euro
Günstiger schlief es sich in Deutschland während des Untersuchungszeitraums in Nürnberg, Bremen und im Osten des Landes. Für durchschnittlich 96 Euro pro Zimmer und Nacht bettete man sein Haupt in Nürnberg auf ein Hotelkissen, in Bremen und Berlin wurden sogar lediglich 93 Euro fällig. “Berlin kann das Preisniveau so konstant niedrig halten, weil dort die Nachfrage das Angebot bestimmt”, erläutert Mirko Behnert. “Der Hotelmarkt in der Hauptstadt ist stark in Bewegung, es entstehen weitere Hotels und der Wettbewerb der Hotellerie untereinander wirkt sich positiv für den Verbraucher aus”, so Behnert.

Lesen Sie weiter bei tophotel.de