Recent Articles

• Mixing a Boutique Hotel and Rentals in Nashville’s Midtown

  February 2, 2018

  Imagine arriving home after a long day at the office and calling room service to have a chef-prepared meal delivered to your door. For residents of Nashville’s new, innovatively designed Aertson Midtown building, that is not wishful thinking. They simply place an order with the signature restaurant of the Kimpton hotel that shares their apartment building.

• Hilton Rolls Out Mobile-Centric “Connected Room” Technology

  January 18, 2018

  U.S.-based hotel chains continually aim to one-up the competition in order to attract customers—particularly younger ones—to their properties and loyalty programs. Now Hilton is surging ahead with its “Connected Room” concept, which allows guests to personalize and control every aspect of their experience using their smartphones.

• Flying Flagless in the Hospitality Industry

  October 26, 2017

  Most hotels in the United States operate under the umbrella of large hospitality chains such as Hilton or Marriott. But today’s hotel owners and investors are increasingly flying solo, eschewing big-brand affiliations to create their own independent identities.

• New Hospitality Concepts Merge Hotels with Apartment Living and Hostels

  October 25, 2017

  Since Airbnb began to disrupt the U.S. hospitality sector, industry leaders have been thinking about ways to attract previously underserved customers. A number of recently built hotels and resorts combine the space and amenities of a private home with high-end amenities, concierge service, and curated experiences. A 2017 ULI Fall Meeting session presented two recently introduced concepts with distinctly different target markets and price points.

• Bringing a Mixed-Use Mentality to Rehab of Philadelphia’s Century-Old Divine Lorraine

  June 12, 2017

  Eric Blumenfeld, a prominent homegrown Philadelphia developer, more than a decade ago began rehabbing buildings in the city’s North Broad Street corridor and inviting big-name restaurateurs to use the space. Now, with the reopening of the long-vacant Divine Lorraine as apartment/restaurant space, a beloved architectural icon, Blumenfeld, owner of EB Realty Management, believes his vision is finally coming together.

• Investors React to Changing Tourist Patterns in Europe

  February 3, 2017

  Europe is a divided continent in many ways. While markets like Spain, Portugal, and Croatia are experiencing a surge in visitors, France, Belgium, and Turkey face a tourism crisis. Performance varies from country to country.

• Urban Resorts Targeting Today’s Travelers with Placemaking, Updated Design

  November 17, 2016

  Resort developers are coming up with new ways to create allure in urban locations—where they can’t rely on beaches, golf, or skiing to attract fickle travelers.

• U.S. Hotel Industry Bracing for a Slower Year

  June 29, 2016

  After years of steady growth, the hotel industry is bracing for a tough year. “Growth and revenue are slowing down,” Bruce Baltin, managing director of CBRE Hotels, told executives and experts gathered for ULI’s “Hotel and Resort Development: Next Wave of Innovation” conference in La Costa, California, held in June. “It’s hit a peak. We think we’re at a plateau.”

• What’s Working and What’s Not as Generational Shift Hits Hospitality Sector

  The long-predicted generational shift in the hotel industry is starting to happen, according to speakers at ULI’s recent “Hotel and Resort Development: Next Wave of Innovation” conference in La Costa, California. Baby boomers are growing older and millennials are developing as a buying group, forcing developers and operators to rethink developments. Everyone is racing to determine what works—and what doesn’t—as projects look to adjust to the latest trends, speakers said.