Middletown Fairfield Hotel Honored by Marriott Chairman David Marriott

Retreat Hotels & Resorts (“Retreat”) announced that the Fairfield Inn & Suites in Middletown, DE, owned by a partnership between Retreat, the Axia Hotel Group, and LNWA, received the “Best Project” award from Marriott International. Retreat received the award from the Chairman of Marriott, David S. Marriott, and other senior leaders at the Marriott hotel owners’ conference in Orlando, FL. The Best Project Award recognizes the top project completed by each Marriott Select Brand, based on design, cooperation, participation, and process.

From Left to Right: Leeny Oberg, Marriott Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President, Development; Liam Brown, Marriott Group President, US & Canada; JJ Singh, Retreat Hotels & Resorts President; Stephen Schindel, Retreat Hotels & Resorts Director of Development & Operations; David S. Marriott, Marriott Chairman of the Board; Ty Breland, Marriott Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer; Karen Finberg, Marriott Chief Franchise Officer

The Fairfield brand is Marriott’s second-largest brand, and warmly welcomes guests with friendly service and comfortable spaces—offering them the flexibility to work, rest and maintain their balance while on the road. Signature amenities include complimentary hot breakfast and coffee and lobby market available 24/7. With a heritage from the Marriott family farm, Fairfield delivers the quality and reliability you expect – backed by the Fairfield Guaranty.

  Opened in 2022, the 90-key Fairfield in Middletown includes all signature amenities, while also featuring an indoor pool, large fitness center, and unique outdoor patio that includes seating for dining and a firepit, surrounded by attractive landscaping to create a serene and inviting experience. The hotel is the only Marriott hotel within a 15-mile radius and sits in close proximity to the 301 bypass and Route 1. Guests are able to enjoy numerous amenities surrounding the hotel, with Texas Roadhouse, Metro Diner, Red Robin, Walmart, and the Westown Movie Theatre a short walk away.

  “We are honored to receive this award from Marriott International,” said JJ Singh, president of Retreat Hotels & Resorts. “The award is a testament to the hard work of our team, and an embodiment one of our company’s core values: Excellence in Execution.”

  “Marriott awards the ‘Best Project’ award to truly deserving projects that meet the high standard set by Marriott International. I congratulate the teams at Retreat and Axia on this achievement. Having happily stayed at this hotel multiple times, I can attest that the Fairfield in Middletown is a wonderful property,” said Cameron Read, Marriott Chief Financial Officer, U.S. & Canada.

Unique 2021 Hotel Openings

By: Rani Bernstein

Have you noticed that many hotels are creating unique concepts to entice visitors? Perhaps they’re trying to entice millennials.

As Condor Ferries reports, 86% of millennials travel for experience and culture, with 60% ranking authentic culture as the most vital part of the entire travel experience. This is one reason why more hotels are beginning to focus on the experiences they offer. 2021 will see some of these hotels. Below are three we are excited for, as seen in Vogue.

Lifehouse, Chattanooga, Tennessee

Anticipated to open Winter 2021, this boutique hotel takes over Chattanooga’s beaux-arts train terminal with suites located in old-school Pullman train cars. The hotel is complete with a 40-seat cinema, recording studio, and 1970s lounge and restaurant.

Hutton Brickyards, Kingston, New York

Opening Spring 2021, these luxury cabins are located an hour and a half from New York City. Set on 73 acres of land, you can find an archery range, croquet lawn, fire pits, hiking trails, kayaking, paddle-boarding, snow shoeing, skiing, beekeeping, and an outdoor yoga studio in addition to a spa and restaurant. Need an afternoon snack or drink? Flag down the delivery cart that travels by the countryside cabins.

The Aurum, Catskills, New York

Anticipated to open Fall 2021, this will feature North America’s first Roman-style hammam. Traditionally, a hammam was a public bath, as bathing was considered a social activity. Today, hammams are incorporated in spa treatments, using steam and various water temperatures to stimulate circulation and cleanse one’s pores. These bungalows will have outdoor gardens, interiors filled with antiques, and a shared 6,000 square foot spa that features many bathing and wellness concepts first seen in Ancient Rome.

All of these celebrate history and ensure memorable, unique experiences. For exciting travel ideas in all parts of the world, be sure to visit the article!

Au Revoir Marriott Rewards, Bienvenue Bonvoy

by Elska Vuong

If you watched the Academy Awards last month, you might have noticed something… aside from Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga, that is. Marriott has finally unified all of its rewards programs into a new loyalty program called Bonvoy. During the show, Marriott featured a splashy 60-second commercial directed by Oscar-nominated director Jean-Pierre Jeunet as a part of its effort to introduce Bonvoy. The campaign will include activities across 22 countries throughout the year and leverage major cultural events to further highlight the new travel program, according to Marriott.

The new program, which merges together Marriott Rewards, Ritz-Carlton Rewards, and Starwood Preferred Guest, comes after years of keeping the Marriott and Starwood loyalty programs separate, following Marriott’s acquisition of the smaller company in 2016. The acquisition made Marriott the largest hotel company in the world. Bonvoy has an estimated 120 million members, in turn making it the largest loyalty program for a single hotel company globally.  

With the ad campaign and its associated tagline, “Rewards Reimagined,” Marriott hopes to raise Bonvoy’s brand recognition, along with the profile of its 30 hotel brands. “It’s about the emotional part of what good travel means,” said Karin Timpone, global marketing officer for Marriott International. “That’s what the campaign is all about — people experiencing the joy of good travel and they have one word to describe it, and that one word is ‘Bonvoy.’ The more people hear that, the more they connect that idea of good travel to our portfolio and that program.” The company reportedly spent extensive time researching, before deciding on Bonvoy, shorthand for ‘bon voyage,’ including investigating how the name would be pronounced by foreign language speakers.

Part of the new tagline also reflects a shift in focus from a loyalty program that is exclusively points and in-hotel-perks-driven. The new program and campaign emphasizes customized, special experiences you can have as a Marriott Bonvoy member, including musical performances, sporting events and culinary collaborations. “We think [Bonvoy is] good because it relates to travel, and relates to Marriott, and also points to something new — that the loyalty program is now the richest set of benefits, and much more than what it was in pieces,” said Timpone.