Top fitness professionals stay abreast on current researches and advances in the field to forecast exercise trends and serve a crucial role in promotion into the general population. Health clubs must also chart these trends but have the additional burden of working within limitations of space and budget to provide their members to access to these trends. This is especially true for hotel fitness centers that, due to certain variables such as limited space and non-staffed facilities, must try to offer these trends to their guests when feasible. Following are ten current exercise trends that can be incorporated into the hotel fitness center.. READ MORE

With concern about climate change on the rise, consumers expect businesses to do their part to reduce their negative environmental impact. A recent survey by Tripadvisor.com indicates that environmental friendliness is an important travel-planning consideration for many individuals, with 34% of respondents stating they would be willing to pay more money to stay at an environmentally-friendly hotel. For this very reason, hotel executives are beginning to recognize the importance of turning their gardens green by using sustainable landscaping techniques. READ MORE

The wave of mergers and acquisitions activity, fueled by record hotel profits, globalization and an influx of private equity money, is increasing the market power of the big industry players. Hotel giants have been accumulating multiple brands - either in multiple market sectors or in a single sector - and that trend is expected to continue. As a result, fewer competitors hold larger market shares with more control over the nature of competition in various market segments. These industry trends can draw unwelcome attention from more than just the trustbusters. Competitors and business partners alike have significant incentives to engage in private antitrust litigation, and this only adds to the antitrust concerns that keep your lawyer up at night. READ MORE

Two dark horses have emerged in the current economic climate both competing for hospitality industry and real estate consumer and investment dollars. The contenders are Extended-stay hotels and Multi-family Apartments MFAs). Extended-stay hotels are competing by trading in their economy pedigree and emerging as upscale alternatives to traditional business traveler accommodations. MFA's are responding to the changing market place by offering short-term leases to market segments that traditionally would not be considered rental property consumers. The convergence of long-term stays and short-term leasing creates interesting legal issues as hoteliers and landlords blur the lines between traditional hotel stays and leases of rental property. READ MORE

Mergers and acquisitions, disputes over management agreements, and fights for ownership of guest information. These are just some of the issues among today's hospitality industry headlines. As a lawyer often involved in these sorts of matters, we often must work with the news media - and manage the glare that follows high-profile hospitality issues. While many lawyers shy away from public comment on these matters, we believe that it is better to help our clients navigate the waters of public relations. In fact, we consistently recommend that our clients - whether managers, owners, investors or otherwise - work with the news media when involved in high profile hospitality disputes. READ MORE