Checking In: Moscow Leads Euro Hotel Pipeline

In terms of hotel development in Europe, Russia is king, according to the June 2009 Smith Travel Research Global Construction Pipeline Report. As of June, Moscow has the largest number of rooms in the continent's total active pipeline: 5,127 of the total 94,695, which includes projects from the planning stages to those under construction. Russia also is one of the countries seeing the most development, said STR vice president of content management Duane Vinson. Other countries seeing a good deal of hotel development include Germany, France, Spain and the United Kingdom, according to Vinson. London's 4,968 rooms are the second-highest number in the active pipeline, followed by Berlin's 4,720, the report indicated.

Amex Tweaks Hotel Sourcing Offerings
American Express Business Travel in July added two services to its strategic hotel sourcing and program management offerings. One, Complete Suite by Preferred Extras, provides negotiated discounts of up to 15 percent off the best available rate at more than 7,000 properties worldwide. "Complete Suite provides these discounts to companies that spend under $10,000 annually on hotels, which is a significant differentiator, as most programs require minimums larger than this amount for just one hotel chain," American Express Business Travel Global Advisory Services vice president and general manager Hervé Sedky said in a statement. The second offering, Hotel Expert, gives consultative advice to companies with larger hotel spending levels, providing such services as data benchmarking and tools to boost compliance.

Hotel Service Touchscreen Readied
New York-based technology company Incentient has developed a new touchscreen device that provides hotel services without the need for human intervention. Guests can access a number of services from the panel, including room service, housekeeping, transportation services and meeting information. Hotels can include such data as photos of menu items or properties. The panel updates guests of their requests—whether a room service order is on its way, for example. Incentient co-founder Jennifer Martucci said the SmartTouch systems will be in hotels by year-end.

Starwood Fuels Electric Car Initiatives
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide is adding an electric car charging station at its Element property in Lexington, Mass., one of the first hotels in the nation to do so, according to the company. The station will be both for hotel guests and travelers in the area. The hotel is preparing for an influx of new models of electric cars to be on the road next year.