GULF SHORES, ALA.—The Lodge at Gulf State Park, A Hilton Hotel opened its doors after a much-anticipated return to Alabama’s Gulf Coast. Guests of the 350-room, beachfront hotel, located within Alabama’s Gulf State Park, will enjoy views of the Gulf of Mexico or Lake Shelby with direct access to the emerald green waters of the Gulf and over 6,150 acres of trails and activities within the Park. The Lodge at Gulf State Park is the first full service hotel to open in the area in 20 years. It is a premier meetings and events destination, offering a wide array of...

MALOLO ISLAND, FIJI—The annual Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific (HICAP) has announced the winners for the HICAP 2018 Sustainable Hotel Awards and Six Senses Fiji has taken the title in the Climate Action Category. The awards are designed to recognize hotels in the Asia Pacific region, creating innovative new methods, strategies and technologies to face today’s sustainable development challenge, while providing tangible examples of sustainable best practices that can be replicated and adapted across the region. For climate efforts, Six Senses Fiji is honored to have been awarded top spot for a range of initiatives that are practiced within the resort....

CHICAGO—Olympia Hotel Management announces the opening of SOPHY Hyde Park, the new 98-room boutique hotel located at 53rd Street and Dorchester Avenue in Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood. Developed by The Olympia Companies and SMART Hotels, SOPHY Hyde Park is managed by Olympia Hotel Management and aligns with Olympia’s expertise in developing and managing independent, award-winning boutique properties that evoke a strong sense of place and become an integral part of the community. General Manager Anthony Beach is a former Hyde Park resident and an alumnus of nearby Hyde Park Academy High School. Historic South Side Chicago Neighborhood For locals and visitors alike,...

MENLO PARK, CALIF.—Hotel Nia, a newly opened Autograph Collection property in Silicon Valley, announces its achievement as a LEED Certified Silver building. Developed by Ensemble Investments with architectural design by Cuningham Group Architecture and LEED Engineering by Integral Group, the presentation of this award represents a milestone achievement for the 11-story, 250-room hotel, and reaffirms its commitment to sustainability and green practices. Along with adhering to sustainable attributes throughout the construction process—including over 85 percent waste diversion and 28.8 percent of total building materials manufactured via recycled materials—Hotel Nia also kept construction as local as possible, with 38.41 percent of...

EAGLE BEACH, ARUBA—Proving actions speak louder than words, Aruba’s Bucuti & Tara Beach Resort just became the very first hotel in the Caribbean to achieve carbon neutrality. To be certified as CarbonNeutral, recognized as a critical element in the resort’s comprehensive sustainability program, the CarbonNeutral certification follows the CarbonNeutral Protocol and was officially made on August 28, 2018. CarbonNeutral is a global standard awarded to businesses that have reduced their (CO2) greenhouse gas emissions, which trap heat in the atmosphere, to net zero. “Bucuti & Tara Beach Resort has set the benchmark high with its sustainability program and we’re delighted that...

MIAMI—The Naples Hotel Group, a leading hotel development and management company, celebrates the TownePlace Suites by Marriott Miami Airport for achieving the LEED Silver certification by the U.S. Green Building Council under their rating system, which is the most widely used green building rating system. Naples Hotel Group was awarded the development and management contract for the Miami Airport hotel by owners, Hotelex Airport LLC. The LEED certification identifies the TownePlace Suites by Marriott Miami Airport as an example of sustainability and helping to transform the building industry. According to the U.S. Green Building Council’s website, LEED, or Leadership in...

MCLEAN, VA.—Home2 Suites by Hilton, part of Hilton’s All Suites portfolio, announced that the brand will open its first hotel using modular construction in early 2019. Developed by Southern Hospitality Services, LLC., and constructed by Akshar Development Inc., brand executives gathered last week at the future site of the Home2 Suites by Hilton San Francisco Airport North for a staging ceremony where pre-fabricated elements of the hotel were put into position. The hotel represents the Bay Area’s first modular build hotel, and the first Home2 Suites by Hilton modular build. Global Head of Home2 Suites by Hilton, Adrian Kurre, joined...

CHICAGO—Loews Chicago Hotel has joined Shedd Aquarium’s “Shedd The Straw” initiative to reduce the use of single-use plastic straws throughout the hotel. Loews Chicago Hotel is the first hotel to join the initiative aimed at reducing single-use plastic straws to reduce waste and improve marine and freshwater ecosystems. Beginning August 1, beverages served throughout the hotel, including Streeterville Social, ETA Restaurant + Bar, The Lobby Bar, banquets, and in-room dining will not automatically be served with plastic straws. Guests will be provided with biodegradable straws upon request. The initiative is designed to help protect water systems and the animals that live...

SIEM REAP, CAMBODIA—Early last year, Christian de Boer, Managing Director of Jaya House River Park, a 36-room hotel in Siem Reap, Cambodia, launched a campaign to get businesses throughout the region to offer refillable aluminum water bottles instead of disposable plastic ones. The campaign, called Refill Not Landfill, has already avoided the placement of 1.2 million plastic bottles into Cambodia’s waste stream. More than 40 members of Siem Reap’s hospitality and tourism industries and development sector have joined ReFill Not Landfill. Key to the success of the campaign is a sophisticated way to show bottle users where they can fill...

LANCASTER, PA.—High Hotels Ltd. announced it is installing a $1.5 million solar array that will generate 100 percent of the electrical power required to operate one of its existing hotels in Greenfield Corporate Center. The completed installation will make the 133-room Courtyard by Marriott-Lancaster at 1931 Hospitality Drive the first Marriott-branded hotel in the United States with 100 percent of its electricity needs generated from solar power. It is also believed to be the first solar array in the country installed for the sole purpose of generating 100 percent of the electricity needs of a hotel. “This is an exciting...