By DAVID STREITFELD Published: August 19, 2011 In tens of millions of reviews on Web sites like Amazon.com, Citysearch, TripAdvisor and Yelp, new books are better than Tolstoy, restaurants are undiscovered gems and hotels surpass the Ritz. Or so the reviewers say. As online retailers increasingly depend on reviews as a sales tool, an industry […]

The FINANCIAL – Carlson partners with Club Med, enhancing benefits for travelers. Carlson, a privately held, global hospitality and travel company, on March 7 announced the launch of a new, strategic partnership with Club Med, world specialist of upscale, friendly, multicultural all-inclusive vacations.

INTERNATIONAL REPORT—When Craig Neddersen founded IDM Group LLC during 1999, he did so with one goal in mind: to prove boutique properties could outperform the competitive set in secondary and tertiary markets. And not just any boutique properties. Despite the swell of branded boutiques during recent years, IDM Group’s portfolio began with true, blue independents—unique […]

New York Times Travel, November 4, 2010. CLOSE your eyes and imagine a Caribbean paradise: throngs of baby sitters minding tots around the raucous swimming pool, chicken fingers on every menu and Big Bird plodding cheerfully along the beach, the white sand drifting across the Muppet’s yellow feathers. A nightmare, you say? Not if you’re […]

The word “boutique” in business implies small, specialized and unique — precisely the concept big hotel companies are adopting as they veer away from their time-tested, but formulaic lodging models. Nearly every top hotel company from Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc (HOT.N) to Hyatt Hotels Corp (H.N) to InterContinental Hotels Group Plc (IHG.L) has […]

(sorry… it’s in French From Capital.fr) Depuis qu’il est monté en gamme, le Club est devenu cher pour ses clients traditionnels mais manque encore de confort pour les touristes habitués aux hôtels de luxe. Un vrai dilemme. «Venez tester le Club Med», invite toujours son patron, Henri Giscard d’Estaing, quand il rencontre un journaliste. Fin […]