Marriott recently announced a Free Breakfast promotion for weekend stays at participating hotels through March 29th. You must book by January 26th to get in on the deal.
More details can be found here.
A reader suggested that I allow guest posts so that other Marriott faithful can add news and hotel reviews. I think that is a good idea. If you have something that you would like to contribute please send the text of the post via email to rob[at]redroomchronicles[dot]com. If you have a home page or profile on the web that you would like to have linked in the post please include that in the email as well.
Happy New Year!
I haven’t posted anything on Red Room Chronicles for a while and wanted to make a statement for those who may subscribe or stop by and wonder what’s happening with this blog.
When I started writing the blog I was a regular business traveler staying at Marriott Hotels on a weekly basis. Times have changed and now I rarely travel. So I really don’t have anything to write about. I will be off the road for the foreseeable future. That’s a good thing since I get to spend more time with my family.
I’m expecting the situation to be this way for a while so don’t expect anything new here until things change and I start traveling again. I get the feeling that my travels will start up again at some point so I’m keeping my options open, maintaining the domain and keeping the site alive.
Okay, perhaps I’m being a bit dramatic with the title. But Marriott is now publishing three blogs on a regular basis. And they have a YouTube channel.
Chairman Bill Marriott’s Marriott on the Move blog (link – rss) was started first. Then a few months ago Brad Nelson launched Marriott in the Kitchen (link – rss) to highlight the culinary experience. More recently Marriott created a site to highlight the drastic design changes coming to Courtyard Hotels. Go Courtyard (link – rss) features lots of videos showing the design upgrades in action at a hotel in Virginia and a blog written by Brian King. Brian is the Global Brand Manager for Courtyard Hotels.
I used to get most of my news on Marriott from press releases and news items captured from around the web. That’s all changed now that Marriott is publishing via these new media channels.
I just noticed some new features in the Marriott Rewards portion of the Marriott website. The trip planner section allows you to save your favorite hotels as well as indicate some travel interests. Click the thumbnails below for a closer look at some of the options in the trip planner section of the website.
Here are a few pics from my recent stay at the Ritz-Carlton Sarasota. More can be found in the Flickr Set.
We had the pleasure of visiting the Ritz-Carlton Members Beach Club in Sarasota, Florida this week. Use of this facility is complimentary for guests of the Ritz-Carlton Sarasota. You can take a free shuttle from the hotel or drive and utilize the valet parking. The club is three miles from the hotel and it takes about ten minutes to get there.
This club is a very nice facility. There are well appointed locker rooms that have just about everything you need, including towels and wooden lockers that have keys with an elastic lanyard. The service at the pool was excellent with attendants setting up chairs with towels and serving food and drinks from a nice menu. The pool was very friendly for kids because there’s no deep end and one side of the pool has a ramp that you can walk down to wade into the water.
The beach has similar service with attendants who will set up chairs and shuttle food from the pool area. The beach is a bit narrow but I hear this is typical for these parts of Florida. There is also a sit down restaurant on-site for those who want something a little more formal. The family and I enjoyed the poolside service.
Have a look for yourself with some pictures and a video below.
Here’s the video announcement for the new boutique hotel brand being launched by Marriott. Ian Schrager, king of boutique hotels, is involved. Yikes! I hope they’re not getting too hip for me.
You can pick up more Marriott related news videos on their YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/marriottnews.
I saw the news today over on the Marriott On The Move blog that Marriott has launched a food blog called Marriott In The Kitchen.
This new blog is penned by Brad Nelson. Brad is the vice president culinary and corporate chef of Marriott International. There are four posts on the blog right now and I’m looking forward to future updates. Each of the posts currently on the site has a picture that relates to the story in the post.
Food has been an integral part of my experience while staying at Marriott hotels on business. Since the hotel is usually the place where we start and end the day, breakfast and dinner options are especially important. Every Marriott brand offers something a little different so its good to have a place to get information on trends in cuisine at the various hotels.
For the record, my favorite breakfasts were always at Residence Inn. I like the buffet style service that allows me to pick up a quick and healthy hot meal before starting the day. Breakfast in the concierge lounge at the Marriott brand hotels comes in a close second. Again, nice to have a place where I can grab a quick bit with a variety of fruits and cereals.
For dinner I always preferred the really good room service at the JW Marriott brand hotels. Most of the time I traveled solo so it was nice to be able to have a good dinner in the room where I could work or relax in privacy. The Residence Inn comes in second for dinner options. They don’t serve dinner at the Residence Inn but having a small kitchen is sometimes a good thing. Sometimes I’d prefer an economical and healthy meal rather than a big dinner. A kitchen allows me to exercise that preference.
I’ve just booked a stay at the Ritz-Carlton in Sarasota for next month. I’m bringing the family along and I’m very excited. I have not been writing because I simply haven’t been traveling on business for months. This is a welcome leisure trip.
My brother lives in the Sarasota area and I decided to head down for a visit with my wife and daughter to get a little taste of the sun and sand. I searched for Marriott hotels in the area but couldn’t find anything close to the beach. Then I did a check at the Ritz-Carlton website.
The hotel is on the bay but guests have full access to an awesome beach club a couple of miles away. Check out the aerial view below.
I plan on taking pictures and a short video or two of the hotel and beach club to share here when I get back.
