Hotels

Visit almost any retail outlet and at some point in the purchasing process, an employee is bound to offer enrollment into the company's loyalty program. From Best Buy to Marriott, nearly every major retail chain offers a rewards program in some form, and as these programs become more competitive, so do benefits to the consumer.

On a trip to San Francisco in August of 2007, I had a meeting with a client that finished just before lunch time. Needless to say, I was hungry, and being in San Francisco, I knew I could find some interesting eateries.

Mathieu Staat is vice president of Internet and CRM marketing for Accor Hotels, which operates more than 4,000 hotels worldwide across 11 brands.

The Eiffel Tower Restaurant in the Paris Las Vegas hotel announces that it will implement web-based catering and event management software from ReServe Interactive to help streamline events, increase profitability and create unique guest experiences.

There has been an ongoing debate since the inception of self-service kiosks in hotels as to whether they improve or dilute customer service, particularly in traditional high-end hotels where guests have come to expect 'high-touch' service from staff.

The vendor community needs to get serious about fostering interoperability between solutions, according to Tom Conophy, CIO of InterContinental Hotels Group. Go inside the integration strategies of one of the world's largest hotel companies, and read about its CIO's industry-wide call to action.

The 298-room Grand Hyatt DFW (Dallas-Fort Worth) teamed up with key technology partners to develop two first-of-their-kind programs for guest use - iTaste, for interactive wine tasting, and The Virtual Menu, for food ordering.

The ancient art of tasseography - better known as reading tea leaves - has been associated with cultures ranging from the Scottish and Irish to the Greeks and Chinese. Now, after thousands of years, it has finally made its way to HT's headquarters for its inaugural issue of 2008. So, join with us as we peer into the industry's tea cup, in order to divine and understand the issues and trends that will affect you in the year to come.