Congratulations to our client, Wilderness Resorts and Waterparks on the announcement of their newest addition to Wilderness at the Smokies, Soaky Mountain Waterpark. H&LA completed the feasibility study for this expansion and we wish our client best of luck on this exciting expansion in 2020! Published by: Maggie Jones/Knoxville News Sentinel Published date: July 2019

H&LA’s recent research for a project in the Niagara Falls area of Ontario revealed some exciting new hospitality-related developments happening in the area. These developments will have a major impact on tourism, employment, and the general economy in the Niagara Falls area. A new $21 million interactive Titanic museum has been proposed in Niagara Falls,

Insightful article from Hotel News Now managing the rising costs and guest disruption of hotel renovations: Published by: Laura Koss-Feder/Hotel News Now Published date: April 2019 There is no escaping renovations in the hospitality industry. They will refresh properties and ultimately bring in more business. However, hoteliers need careful planning to take into account upward-creeping

Art will meet adventure this weekend as Meow Wolf’s ride opens at Elitch Gardens in Denver. Meow Wolf is an arts and entertainment group based out of Santa Fe and well-known for their alternative art attraction, the House of Eternal Return. The Kaleidoscape ride at Elitch Gardens will be the first Meow Wolf creation at

Congrats to EPR Properties on Kartrite Resort! Set to open on Friday, this resort will be the largest waterpark in the state of New York at 80,000 square feet with 11 water attractions and 318,000 gallons of water! Published by: Joseph Spector/Poughkeepsie Journal Published date: April, 2019 THOMPSON – The Kartrite that’s set to open

Published by: Christina Jelski/Travel Weekly Published date: April 2019 Marriott International and Expedia Group have finalized a new multi-year contract, following the expiration of a previous agreement between the pair in November. In a joint statement, Expedia and Marriott said, “The agreement continues Marriott’s long-standing distribution arrangement with Expedia Group for transient bookings, expands Expedia

Congratulations to our client, Creek Indian Enterprises Development Authority, on the decision to move forward with the planned indoor waterpark component as a second phase of the OWA development. H&LA conducted the waterpark feasibility study for the development and appreciated the opportunity to work with Creek Indian Enterprises Development Authority on this exciting project, which

Hotel News Now has an interesting article highlighting a panel at the Hunter Hotel Conference that addressed the unique challenges extended-stay hotels face in today’s markets. These comments were made during the “Here to (extended) stay” panel by representatives from Extended Stay America and the Lodging Advisory Group. The panel discussed breakfast as a risk

The Hunter Hotel Conference offered a bevy of insights into the hotel industry in 2019 and beyond. H&LA’s Joseph Pierce highlights a few of those insights to think on as we’ve settled in to 2019: There is cautious optimism as the industry is experiencing continued growth of RevPAR. Forecasts suggest that ADR will grow in

The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports that hotel occupancy in Cleveland and the surrounding suburbs rebounded in 2018 and exceeded that achieved in 2016, the year of the Republican National Convention. David Sangree got the opportunity to offer his insights to the Plain Dealer regarding Cleveland’s bounce back. Published by: Cleveland Plain Dealer/Susan Glaser Published date:

Hotel News Now highlighted new hotel brands that opened in 2018. Offerings ranged from extended-stay to pod-style products, but all have one element in common: They’re designed to appeal to travelers seeking various authentic experiences. 2018’s launches include urban properties and secondary city offerings across various classes and segments. Hotel News Now has an alphabetical listing

Dual-branded hotels have gained popularity over the past several years. The following article from CBRE examines the operating efficiencies and discusses whether these dual-brands deliver them to owners. DUAL-BRANDED HOTELS: BEWARE EXPECTATIONS OF SIGNIFICANT OPERATING EFFICIENCIES Published by: Robert Mandelbaum and Gary McDade/CBRE Published date: December 2018 For the past four years the opening of

Hotel News Now reports on the steady increase in hotel rewards programs across all brands and segments across the United States. Published by: Robert McCune/Hotel News Now Published date: July 2018 According to the U.S. Census, about 328 million people inhabit the United States in 2018. Meanwhile, the combined global memberships of loyalty programs reported at

This article was originally published by Hotel News Now. With the start of the new year, many of us take stock of where we are and what 2018 holds in store. The status of the U.S. hotel industry partly depends on the lens you’re looking through—whether you’re a franchise company, developer, owner, operator or investor.

I was happy to be a guest lecturer at MSU’s Hospitality Business Real Estate Investment and Development (REIC) Class on September 25th. The REIC sent along a wonderful write-up of my visit to campus. It was an honor to be there and to have the opportunity to have dinner with some of the students. Their