Front Desk

• Joint venture acquires Liberty Hotel in Boston
  LaSalle Hotel Properties and Carpenter & Co. have teamed up to purchase a majority interest in the 298-room Liberty Hotel in Boston. The sale price amounted to $170 million, or more than $570,000 per room, making it "the highest price per room of all hotels sold in Boston over [at least] the last two years," said J.P. Ford of Lodging Econometrics. Boston Herald (1/5)     

Business Update

• Ritz-Carlton, St. Louis, is sold for $56M
  The Ritz-Carlton, St. Louis, has been acquired by investor Bruce Karsh, president of Oaktree Capital Management. Karsh purchased the hotel for $56 million through his firm Clayton St. Louis Property. The property will undergo a $3 million renovation that could begin in March. American City Business Journals/St. Louis (1/4)     

• Hard Rock International offers perks through new rewards program
  Hard Rock International has introduced the Hard Rock Rewards program to offer exclusive perks for loyal customers. The program is available in two levels: free and paid, which offer the same service such as dedicated check-in lines, free welcome amenities and late check-out. The paid VIP program offers additional perks such as priority seating at cafes, free upgrades at participating hotels and the chance to earn Milestone Rewards for exclusive prizes. TravelPulse (1/3)     

• Other News

• 232-room Waldorf Astoria Berlin debuts
  TravelPulse (1/6)     

Market Trends

• Survey: Travel agents are optimistic about corporate travel in 2013
  Eighty percent of travel agents surveyed by Travel Leaders Group in its annual Travel Trends Survey said they expect business travel to grow or be on par with last year. "Over 77% of our business travel experts polled indicated they were optimistic about their business heading into 2013, while another 18% stated they were neutral about the coming year. Finding ways to trim costs and save on business travel are still paramount, and business travelers who use a corporate travel management company have a distinct advantage because they can travel more frequently as they contain costs on each individual trip," said Barry Liben, CEO of Travel Leaders Group. TravelPulse (1/6)     

• Nature retreats, political travel will thrive in 2013, JWT says
  Travelers in 2013 will seek new experiences such as politics-themed tours, nature vacations and film-inspired travel, marketing communications firm JWT says in its Things to Watch in 2013 Travel Report. On the services front, on-the-go fitness options, huge shopping malls with hotels and improved live-streaming technology are forecast to be on the rise. HotelsMag.com (free registration) (1/4)     

• Orbitz unveils its hottest travel destinations, trends for 2013
  The Orbitz Insider Index says that Charleston, S.C.; Orlando, Fla.; Atlantic City, N.J.; New Orleans and New Zealand will be among sought-after travel destinations in 2013. The index also lists mobile booking, international travel and rewards via social media as top trends. TravelPulse (1/3)     

• Other News

• Hotel market faces several challenges in 2013
  HotelNewsNow.com (1/3)     

• Las Vegas is set to launch new advertising campaign
  USA Today/Dispatches blog (1/3)     

Hot Topics

Top five news stories selected by AH&LA SmartBrief readers in the past week.

• Dual-branding offers a win-win scenario for hotel developers (USA Today)

• HEAT approach is a smart way to handle customer criticism (HotelNewsNow.com)

• Uncertainty clouds hotels' future in 2013, analysts say (Travel Weekly)

• Added fees are expected to increase travel costs in 2013 (USA Today)

• Lodging brand leaders share their 2013 outlook for the industry (HotelNewsNow.com)

• Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers.

Spotlight on Technology

• In hotel industry, mobile-website usage beats apps
  According to findings from a Google report, "The 2012 Traveler," the number of leisure travelers using mobile devices for information has grown more than 450% since 2009. About 40% of leisure travelers book via mobile browsers while just 12% use applications; 36% of business travelers prefer browsers over the 17% who use apps. Hoteliers should consider creating a mobile website instead of an app, some data suggest. Hotel Management online (1/3)     

• Other News

• INNsight.com has a different pricing, commission scheme
  Hotel Management online (1/3)     

Best Practices

• Column: Becoming a visionary hotel leader is vital to success
  A hotel leader with a vision for the property and the skills to help develop employees' full potential will achieve success more effectively than a manager who's focused more on the financial aspect of the business, Alan Campbell writes. Managers deal with present, "usually from the safety of their office. Leaders work, on the other hand, in the open among the people they lead, on their vision of the future," Campbell writes. eHotelier.com (1/4)     

Development

• Plans emerge for $15M hotel in Nyack, N.Y.
  A developer has proposed building a luxury boutique hotel in Nyack, N.Y. Plans call for a 128-room property that includes a bar, a restaurant, a fitness facility and meetings space. The Journal News (Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, N.Y.) (1/4)     

Government Affairs

• New "fiscal cliff" legislation provides further benefits for hoteliers
  AH&LA points out several provisions in the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 that could further aid the lodging industry. Among these is the reauthorized Work Opportunity Tax Credit, which encourages hoteliers to hire at-risk individuals such as veterans and the disabled. The legislation also extended the use of the Section 179 expensing method, which allows operators to deduct acquisition costs for capital equipment immediately instead of depreciating them over a period of time. HotelsMag.com (free registration) (1/4)     

AH&LA News

• AH&LA member savings ends soon for HR Conference
  Time is running out to save on the only HR conference for our industry -- HR in Hospitality, March 11-13 in Las Vegas. Register by Feb. 25 at www.HRinHospitality.com to attend for $1,145. AH&LA members should e-mail membership@ahla.com for a promo code to attend for $920.     

• Free webinar archive
  From ADA regulations to bed bugs to healthcare, AH&LA has a library of webinars that AH&LA members can watch and listen to for free. Each session features an expert panel and concludes with Q&A from attendees. Visit here to access these resources now.     

SmartQuote

If money be not thy servant, it will be thy master. The covetous man cannot so properly be said to possess wealth, as that may be said to possess him." --Francis Bacon, British author and statesman