Chicago Bulks Up Hospitality Choices For Conventioneers

<B>Chicago Bulks Up Hospitality Choices For Conventioneers</B>

By Tim Paradis

With 5,000 new hotel rooms slated to open downtown during the next three years, Chicago is jockeying to become a more desirable destination for convention goers and business travelers. Although many people in the Chicago hotel industry hesitate to say whether rates will rise or fall as more rooms become available, most agreed that travelers will embrace their new choices and, more than ever, weigh service and familiarity when deciding where to stay.

Robert Rogers, a supervisor at the Palmer House Hilton, believes even a downturn in the nation's robust economy would not significantly dampen sales because guests look for a level of service that few hotels provide. He cited the hotel's rising occupancy rates as proof that service is king. "At times, our rates are a bit high but the service is the best," he said.

Deborah Sexton, executive vice president of the city's convention and tourism bureau, believes the new hotels, which will raise total downtown rooms to 33,000, will not reduce demand significantly because more people will be visiting the city. Occupancy rates in the city continue to hover around 70 percent as they have for the past five years, according to bureau statistics. The average rate in downtown had, by last year, increased to about $145, a $38 increase since 1995. "I think the new hotels are good; there's more to choose from," said Sexton. "I think we'll see a leveling out of the average rate, and that's good as far as the convention planners are concerned."

Added choices will come not solely in the form of new hotels, but in new types of hotels. Boutique hotels, for instance, have seen tremendous growth, said Sexton. Boutique hotels entering the Chicago market in the next few years include the Grand Bay Hotel/Wyndham, Park Hyatt, Peninsula Hotel and W.

Connie Dozier, director of business travel for Fairmont Hotels and Resorts, said some regular guests might stray to the boutique hotels, but that many will gravitate toward hotels that offer top-notch service. "We stay away from the quirks, but we still are there to make the stay comfortable," Dozier said. "There's some familiarity. It feels like you've come home."

Many hotels are catering to business travelers by opening properties among the corporate towers of downtown's Loop, Sexton said: "The number of hotels in the Loop has probably seen the most growth."

Hotels are not only courting business travelers with convenient locations, but also with increased use of their answer to frequent flyer miles. Dozier said Fairmont still is developing a program that would reward regulars with bonuses, such as room upgrades.

Rogers said Hilton offers an "honors" program that similarly rewards customer loyalty. So, what will bring new, soon-to-be-repeat customers to Chicago's hotels? In a word: conventions.

Sexton said a concerted effort among hospitality, civic and state leaders coupled with a more aggressive convention and tourism bureau has made it easier to book conventions. The city's McCormick Place--the largest convention center in the hemisphere--is able to handle two to three events at one time, in part, because of expansions in the past few years. But more recent changes in city labor laws allow more convention hosts to erect their own booths and equipment instead of paying for a set-up crew. Even though most hosts of small shows continue to pay for a set-up crew, the changes have prompted many organizations to take a second look at Chicago, Sexton said: "The perception was that we were too expensive or that we weren't interested. That perception has been corrected."

Handling events of varying sizes has become such a priority that talk of a "very strong expansion" of McCormick has begun. In six to nine months, Sexton said, planning could begin for an addition to open in 2005. Capping the expansions, labor changes and new luxury hotels is a program in which state and city tourism bureaus borrow the hotels' notion that service breeds loyalty. The "We're Glad You're Here" program, created last year, puts a face on the city by adding personal touches, said Sexton: "It's been a home run with our customers." Visitors arriving at airports, hotels and restaurants enjoy seeing signs welcoming their group, she added: "They love that personal attention.