It started in London, made it’s way to New York and found a place among Las Vegas hotels, and now, the the Hard Rock chain is heading for the islands. The legendary hotel chain is planning to open its first all-inclusive resort and casino next spring in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic.

The 1800-room Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Punta Cana will brand all the comforts of rock and roll with the five-star Moon Palace Resort all-inclusive experience. The hotel will include “Rock Star” suites with luxury accommodations, including double Jacuzzis and double showers and an extensive collection of Hard Rock’s authentic music memorabilia including an Eric Clapton guitar.

Taking a nod from its Las Vegas hotel counterpart, the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Punta Cana will feature one of the largest casinos in the Caribbean with more than 48,000 square feet of gaming space including a high-limit poker room, a VIP lounge and a Race and Sports Book, in addition to 457 slots and 40 tables featuring Baccarat, Black Jack, Craps and Roulette, according to the company’s press release.

If you’re eager to get your game on, and recoup your losses (or celebrate your wins) on the beach the next day, the Hard Rock Hotel Punta Cana is slated to open in the spring.

It’s that time of year — time to spread your holiday cheer and extend your giving tree, and Kimpton Hotel is helping to get the charity flowing.

“Cocktails for a Cure” pairs Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants with World AIDS Day, which falls on December 1, 2009. From now until Dec. 9, diners can enjoy any of four Red Ribbon-themed cocktails hand-crafted by Kimpton’s own mixologist Jacques Bezuidenhout, and a portion of the cocktail proceeds will go to the Red Ribbon Campaign.  Book a hotel room at any Kimpton and enjoy some of these themed-cocktails:

o        Grapefruit Spritz: Ketel One Citroen, Campari and grapefruit juice sparked with club soda;
o        Bad Apple: Don Julio Blanco, Lillet, Angostura bitters, apple juice and ginger beer;
o        Orange Blossom Fizz: Belvedere Orange, St. Germain Elderflower liqueur, pineapple juice and sparking wine;
o        Morning Daiquiri: Ten Cane Rum, Grand Marnier shaken with fresh lime juice and orange marmalade

Red Ribbon parties will be hosted at Kimpton hotels in Virginia, Colorado, Texas, Pennsylvania, Utah, California, Washington State, and Washington, DC.

To learn more, visit www.kimptonhotels.com/programs/red-ribbon.aspx

Leave it to Las Vegas hotels to win big.

The Wynn Las Vegas and Wynn’s Encore earned top honors from the 2010 Forbes Travel Guide Star awards (formerly Mobil Travel Guide Star awards) and the 2010 American Automobile Association (AAA) Diamond Awards. The Wynn and Encore collectively gained more Forbes Five Star awards than any other casino resort in the world.

This is the second year in a row the Wynn Las Vegas earned Five Star ratings in every category–Hotel, Restaurant and Spa. The Spa at Encore also received a Forbes Five Star award in its first year of operation for 2010.

Want a little more? Las Vegas knows no boundaries…

Alex, the Wynn Las Vegas restaurant, received the Forbes Five Star and AAA Five Diamond awards for its fourth consecutive year. AAA Four Diamond ratings were also awarded for the fourth consecutive year to Bartolotta Ristorante di Mare, Daniel Boulud Brasserie, Okada, SW Steakhouse and Wing Lei.

If luxury, amenities and fine dining are what you’re looking for on your next trip to Las Vegas, take a tip from the experts and book a hotel with Wynn.

Little girls wanted to be them, boys wanted to date them. Now, travelers can get them at a discount… we’re talking about the Radio City Rockettes, of course.

Good news for travelers heading to Atlanta this holiday season: If you’re wishing for a little Christmas cheer, courtesy the high-kicking Rockettes, the Atlanta Marriotts have a deal for you.

Stay a night at one of the Atlanta hotels owned by Marriott and you can grab tickets to the Christmas Spectacular at a fraction of the cost. Stay at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis, the Atlanta Marriott Suites Midtown and the Renaissance Atlanta Hotel Downtown, and book the the Rockettes® Radio City Christmas Spectacular Package which includes:

• Accommodations for one night
• Complimentary hotel parking (including valet at the Marquis)
• 20 percent discount off food and non alcoholic beverages in the hotel restaurant/lounge
• $10 off Christmas Spectacular tickets for select shows (the $45.50 and $65.50 seats)

The Renaissance is the closest hotel to the Fox Theater, where the show is being held. Prices for the package at the Atlanta Renaissance range from $119-$129 a night. Book the Atlanta hotel package at The Marriott Suites for $139 to $189 a night, or stay at the The Atlanta Marriott Marquis for $159 to $199 a night.

Of course, there are a few rules to follow:

• The package runs from November 19 to December 6, 2009
• The show tickets must be booked separately via Ticketmaster using code MARROX
•
• The 20 percent restaurant/lounge discount is valid when the show ticket is presented to the server
• Package rates are per room, per night, and blackout dates may apply

There’s more t0 Miami than South Beach and Collins Avenue. Miami hotels are as diverse and unique as the people who inhabit the city, so finding a Miami hotel that suits your needs is as important as the first cocktail you order at the beach.

The hotel, like the pretty pink umbrella placed in your drink, will be the first impression you’ll remember on your Miami vacation.

On a recent trip to Miami, we checked out the Mandarin Oriental Miami - a 5-star hotel located in Brickell Key, near downtown Miami and only a short cab ride from South Beach. Here’s our review:

Location: If you’re looking for a Miami hotel away from the chaos of the city center, but close enough to see it all shake down from your hotel room balcony, the Mandarin Miami is the place to stay. Each of the rooms feature balconies or terraces that overlook either Miami Bay or the Miami city skyline. Brickell Key is a 1.3-mile island accessible via bridge from downtown Miami and only a few blocks away from the the restaurants, shopping and conveniences of downtown Miami.

Rooms: The rooms in this Miami hotel are decorated Miami-style with Asian-influences. The white flowing drapes, white bed linens, white sofas and chairs, and white towels and robes - symbolic of luxurious Miami Beach - are flanked by dark wood furniture and bamboo bath amenities. The rooms, which range from standard size to suites, are roomy and open, allowing two people to co-habitate comfortably without stepping over each other’s luggage and dirty laundry. Our favorite part: The LCD TV that swivels so you can watch TV from any area — in the bed, on the sofa, in the bath…

Customer service: Luxury hotels pride themselves on personal attention to their guests and the Mandarin’s customer service is no exception. Immediately upon walking into the hotel, we were greeted by employees, offered iced tea and asked what paper we wanted in the morning (New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal or a local Miami paper).

Amenities: You don’t have to leave your room at the Mandarin Miami if you don’t want to - everything you need to survive is located within arms reach. The refrigerator is stocked with food including chips, power bars and candy, and a variety of soft drinks and bottled water. The TVs come complete with Spanish and English channels, including HBO and pay-per-view movies, so you won’t feel bad about staying in bed a little longer. The bath robes and slippers are a perfect addition to the home-away-from-home atmosphere and each room has an in-room hairdryer, iron and ironing board.

Should you choose to leave the room, the Mandarin Miami has plenty to offer. The spa has been rated one of the best in the nation and we can attest to this rating - take advantage of the steam room, sauna and showers that can easily host a disco party with your 10 closest friends. If you’re seeking some sun time, head to the pool or Mandarin’s man-made private beach, both overlooking the bay.

Downside: If you plan to work while you’re here you’ll pay for your Internet access. Prepare to pay $15 for 24-hours. On the flip side, the WiFi was fast and reliable.

Lifestyle: The Mandarin Oriental Miami is a luxury hotel meant for the luxury traveler. There weren’t a lot of kids running through the lobby, and we wouldn’t expect there to be - this hotel is romantic, sensual and intoxicating; few emotions we don’t expect the underage to understand.

Overall rating: If you’re looking for an island getaway that is still close to the city lifestyle, the Mandarin Miami on Brickell Key is a great choice. Hint: Ask for a corner room and you’ll get a bigger balcony and better view.

Good real estate is all about the location and thanks to new interactive maps launched by hotelicopter.com, you can be sure your hotel is exactly where you want it to be.

Looking for a hotel near the city center? Need a hotel on the beach? No problem. You can be sure that when you book a hotel you’re getting a room in the exact location you’re seeking.

hotelicopter’s hotel search maps allow travelers to pinpoint hotels in specific locations. To find hotels near a certain address, simply type in the address and the new interactive hotel map will bring up hotels close to your search criteria. Want a Boston hotel in Back Bay so you’re close to shopping on Newbury Street? Need a Chicago hotel in Wrigleyville to ensure you’re only steps from the game at Wrigley Park?  Neighborhoods appear directly on the map, making it easier to find exactly what you’re looking for.

“This is another big step toward empowering travelers to find the perfect hotel deal,” said Adam Healey, hotelicopter`s Co-founder and CEO. “If you are like me and book hotels based on location, this map will be an invaluable tool
for you,” Healey continued. “I believe hotelicopter now has the best mapping functionality of any hotel booking site, and we`re just getting started.”

The interactive map allows you to see the hotel name, star and user rating, and average rates. Take control over your hotel search with the new interactive hotel map, and be confident you’re staying exactly where you want to be.

We believe there’s no better cure for stressed out souls than booking a vacation, but W Hotels is taking our theory one step further: They’re fighting for a cure for breast cancer.

In collaboration with Lee Denim and the Entertainment Industry Foundation, W Hotels is offering a special New York hotel packages to help the fight again breast cancer.

Book the “Share Your Heart” package at any W New York hotel through October and a portion of your room proceeds will go toward actress Christina Applegate’s foundation, Right Action for Women. The special New York hotel package includes:
> Nightly accommodations
> 25 percent off Lee Denim gift card
> “I Heart Life” t-shirt designed by Christina Applegate
> Two “Tickled Pink” cocktails at W Hotel bars

We checked the participating hotels sites and found nightly rates from $409 in New York and $399 in Hoboken. The New York hotels included in the promotion are:
W New York
W New York - The Court
W New York - The Tuscany
W New York - Times Square
W New York - Union Square
W New York - Hoboken

If you’re interested in how social search is being integrated into online travel, check out this interview I did with EyeforTravel’s Ritesh Gupta in anticipation of my upcoming presentation in Prague at EyeforTravel’s Sales and Marketing European Summit on October 13th and 14th.

Are you paying too much for your hotel room? The short answer is, 100% absolutely, positively, unequivocally, most definitely yes. Need me to be more clear? If you are like most travelers and only shop at one of the leading online travel sites you are probably paying too much.

Yes, it’s true that Expedia or Travelocity may offer the best rate for a specific hotel in a specific destination. However, my point is, if you do not comparison shop, you won’t know if you are getting the best rate possible. Don’t get me wrong, I love Travelocity and Expedia and I often book travel through those sites, but if you were buying a car would you only go to one dealership? Let me answer that for you. No, you wouldn’t and that’s because you know you save money when you create competition. The same holds true for hotel rooms.

Don’t feel ripped off because visiting only one travel booking site before buying travel products is typical behavior. Folks become loyal to that one site or may not know that other options exist. However, recent data released by hotelicopter.com (yes, that’s us —  the leading hotel search engine) shows that if you book your Thanksgiving holiday hotels at one of those sites, you will pay on average 23% more than if you comparison shop through a hotel search engine (shameless plug for hotelicopter.com here).

Let me put it another way. If you are planning to spend 4 nights in a NYC hotel this Thanksgiving and only seek rates through one leading online travel booking site, you will pay on average $62 more per night ($248 for a 4 night stay) than what you would find by comparing rates across up to 30 different sites.

This example is but one of many cities we checked. Here are some other savings you could experience for Thanksgiving week:

- Los Angeles hotels: save $37 per night (30%)

- San Francisco hotels: save $32 per night (28%)

- New York hotels: save $62 per night (23%)

- Chicago hotels: save $39 per night (22%)

We at hotelicopter looked at hotel rates in dozens of different cities found on the leading booking sites and compared them to the rates found on hotelicopter. To be honest, I was a little surprised at what we found. I knew searching equals saving, I just never realized it was this pronounced.

The news gets better too. We found the same pattern holds true for Christmas break as well. In NYC alone, you could save, on average, a whopping $86 per night (36%!) off the rates found on one leading booking site. That’s almost a $350 savings for a four night stay. What’s the moral to this story? hotelicopter.com not only helps you find the perfect hotel for you for less, but we can also help you save money to help pay for all those holiday gifts.

Now keep in mind that hotel rates constantly fluctuate so you may find slightly different results. But the underlying principle remains the same. You will save money by comparison shopping for hotels. I’m talking about the 5-star see and be seen properties such as Le Parker Meridien in NYC, to the hip and cool properties like Hotel Indigo in Chicago, to budget properties such as the Parc 55 hotel in San Francisco. No matter what you are looking for, you can find better rates if you shop around. Working with over 30 sites, hotelicopter lets you compare the rates for over 150,000 hotels across the world instantly so you can feel more confident that you are purchasing your hotel room from the site with the best price available.

Don’t settle for the first rate you see. Let sites like hotelicopter do the work for you. Search equals save. It’s a simple equation that can really add up for you. Safe travels.

- Carl Schwartz :: hotelicopter.com

Just got back from another great conference in Chicago, this one was EyeforTravel’s Travel Distribution Conference, where they had tracks on Distribution, Revenue Management and Mobile.

I was asked to speak on helping travel companies develop their mobile strategies. You can see and download a copy of my presentation here.

My general sense is that we have finally reached the tipping point with mobile, with the convergence of lower-priced, full-featured smartphone devices, with increasing broadband penetration, and applications that provide real value to consumers. However, I think realistically that we are just at the beginning of the mobile revolution (smartphones still only make up only about 6% of all handsets) much like we were with the Internet in 1997. So while some players will surely benefit from being a first mover, there are also advantages to letting other companies make mistakes and learning from them.

Enjoy!