AUSTIN, TEXAS—Hospitality Financial and Technology Professionals (HFTP) announced that the 2010 Hospitality Industry Technology Exposition and Conference (HITEC) will be June 21 to 24 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Fla. HITEC, produced by HFTP, is the world’s largest hospitality technology exposition and conference. It offers a unique combination of top-notch hospitality technology sessions led by industry peers and experts, and an unparalleled trade show showcasing the latest hospitality technology products and services. “Orlando has always been a popular HITEC location for attendees and vendors, with some of the most attended HITEC’s held there,” said Frank Wolfe, CAE,...

NATIONAL REPORT—It is odd that the most-recognized graphic symbol for a good idea is a lit incandescent bulb, but that’s been the case for at least a century. It’s getting to be common knowledge, however, that the incandescent is likely to go the way of its immediate successors in commercial lighting, the High-Intensity Discharge (HID) and conventional fluorescent varieties, which are also likely to rapidly disappear soon. Part of this change has been underway in the hospitality industry for some time now, of course, thanks to the screw-in compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs) that now seem to be the rule rather...

BUFFALO, N.Y.—Buffalo Lodging Associates, LLC, a hotel development and management company, announced that four of their eight Florida hotels have been designated as “green” through the Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) Florida Green Lodging Program. Earning the designation demonstrates a responsibility to protect Florida’s environment while providing the comforts of home. The following Buffalo Lodging hotels have demonstrated their commitment to succeed in protecting Florida’s resources: Homewood Suites UCF Area-Orlando (the first Green Lodging hotel in the UCF Area); Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites Nearest Universal Orlando; Comfort Suites Universal Studios Area-Orlando; and Comfort Suites University Park/Sarasota. The...

CHICAGO—The InterContinental Chicago is offering eco-conscious travelers one of the greenest hotel stays in the city of Chicago. On October 16, the historic hotel, housed in a building built in 1929, received the Green Seal Silver certification for superior eco-friendly initiatives and highly efficient energy use. The InterContinental was one of only five hotels in Chicago to receive the certification, and the only “big 10” hotel—the 10 largest hotels in the city by capacity—to be honored. The InterContinental Chicago is also the first hotel in the city of Chicago to hold certifications from both Green Seal and Energy Star,...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Hotel owners now have more energy efficient choices when shopping for televisions. Since November 1, televisions meeting EPA’s new, more comprehensive energy efficiency specification have been available. Televisions that meet the new Energy Star specification will be up to 30 percent more energy efficient than conventional models. If all televisions sold in the United States met the new Energy Star requirements, the savings in energy costs would grow to be about $1 billion annually and greenhouse gas emissions would be reduced by the equivalent of about 1 million cars. “EPA encourages consumers to look for the Energy Star label...

RIVIERA MAYA, MEXICO—Emerging on the hotel scene with an environmental focus, Sandos Hotels & Resorts unveiled plans to convert Sandos Caracol Beach Resort & Spa and Sandos Select Club Beach Resort & Spa in the Riviera Maya, Mexico, into an Eco-Resort and Eco-Versity in which guests will view, learn and engage in ecological techniques and practices. The new Sandos Caracol Eco-Resort & Spa will debut in 2009. “In order to move towards a sustainable future, we decided to transform our Caracol complex into an Eco-Resort by implementing a variety of ‘green’ practices that are taken to the next...

SANTA MONICA, CALIF.—The Hotel Shangri-La in Santa Monica, which has recently undergone a $30 million refurbishment, will not only reopen in November 2008 with a sleek new look, but also with many new green amenities and practices. The Hotel Shangri-La, which overlooks the Pacific Ocean on Ocean Ave., is dedicating itself to being environmentally conscious. The newly redesigned hotel, which will display a mix of nostalgic Art Deco elements with a contemporary twist, will be adding a restaurant, an elevated pool with cabanas, and a rooftop bar named Suite 700. Other changes include many eco-friendly elements and amenities which...

PORTLAND, ORE.—The Green Meeting Industry Council (GMIC) announced the theme for its annual Greening the Hospitality Industry Conference scheduled for February 24 to 26, 2009 at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh. The theme is “action=sustainability.” The 2009 GMIC programs committee identified global and tactical concerns facing the meetings industry based on the audience sectors of corporate and association meeting planners, industry suppliers, government and the global meetings industry. The 2009 conference will offer tiered educational tracks for meeting planners and industry suppliers. The participants’ learning experiences will range from “Future leaders” 101 tracks, to hands-on experiential learning,...

SINGAPORE—Alila Hotels and Resorts announced its commitment to go carbon neutral, first through its head office and then throughout all of its properties in Asia. Working with The GreenAsia Group, a specialist in carbon management in Asia, Alila will first achieve carbon neutrality for its head office in Singapore by this December. Further affirming its commitment, Alila intends to achieve carbon neutrality for all of its seven existing hotels and resorts in Asia and to create programs for its guests to enjoy carbon neutral holidays. “Alila’s decision to go carbon neutral is in line with its long-held vision and corporate...

ATLANTA—Spas intent on greening their operations have a new strategic tool to work with as the result of an intensive three-day meeting organized by Green Spa Network (GSN), a trade association devoted to greening the spa industry. The organization’s first Green Spa Congress, held in Atlanta on September 29 to October 1, has developed the GSN Sustainability Assessment Tool—GSN SAT—to assist GSN member spas in their migration to becoming greener businesses. This is the first tool of its kind developed specifically for the spa industry. During three days of intensive meetings, 24 members of Green Spa Network (GSN) from all...