Best hotel chains: Holiday Inn, Four Seasons, JW Marriott
— -- Paul Tamburelli stayed 125 nights this year at Marriott hotels and says the chain is the only one that consistently meets and exceeds his needs.
"When a reservation is booked, I never have to worry about my room being there for me," says Tamburelli, a vice president in the commercial vehicle transportation industry.
Tamburelli of Peoria, Ariz., says he wearily checked in at 2 a.m. at the Kansas City Airport Marriott a few years ago after traveling 14 hours during a blizzard.
"It was one of those days from hell," he recalls. "I had not eaten all day, and everything was closed. The night manager found me a sandwich and something cold to drink. Now, that is service."
It's clear why Tamburelli says Marriott is the best hotel chain. Other frequent business travelers give reasons — ranging from friendly staff to cleanliness, frequent-traveler programs and price — for preferring others. They might all want to take a peek at Business Travel News' 2011 U.S. Hotel Chain Survey to see how their favorites stack up in the eyes of the managers who book travel for many businesses.
The trade publication received 519 survey responses from corporate travel department officials who rated hotel chains in up to 13 categories on a one-to-five scale.
Among other criteria, the chains were rated on the appearance of their hotels, the quality of room amenities and business amenities inthe rooms, the quality of business centers and their overall price and value.
The winners?
Four Seasons for deluxe hotels, JW Marriott for upper-upscale hotels, Crowne Plaza for upscale hotels, Holiday Inn for midprice hotels, Four Points by Sheraton for select service hotels, Staybridge Suites for upscale extended-stay hotels and TownePlace Suites for midprice extended-stay hotels.
Four Seasons' score of 4.33 was higher than any other hotel chain's. The score enabled Four Seasons to knock The Ritz-Carlton — which finished first among deluxe hotels last year — out of the top spot.
No longer a two-horse race
The Ritz-Carlton slipped to third with a 4.20 score behind the Mandarin Oriental's 4.31. It was the first time in more than a decade of Business Travel News surveys that The Ritz-Carlton had not finished first or second.
"Luxury for a long time was a two-horse race between Four Seasons and Ritz-Carlton, but not anymore," says Michael Baker, Business Travel News' senior editor for lodging.
"Mandarin Oriental outscored Ritz-Carlton this year," he says, "and St. Regis and Fairmont were not far behind."
Despite its slide from the top, The Ritz-Carlton scored highest in four categories: facilities for resort meetings, arranging individual travel, the physical appearance of its hotels, and helpful and courteous staff.
JW Marriott's 4.21 nudged out No. 2 InterContinental's 4.19 among upper-upscale hotels.
It was a return to form for JW Marriott, which ranked No. 1 from 2007 through 2009 but fell to No. 2 in last year's survey.
JW Marriott received the highest score from corporate travel buyers in six categories: facilities for resort meetings, facilities for non-resort meetings, commission payment systems, physical appearance of hotels, quality of in-room amenities and helpful/courteous staff.
Rewards programs help
Frequent business traveler Gene Placzkowski of Racine, Wis., can appreciate JW Marriott's top ranking. His favorite hotel is the JW Marriott in Bangkok.
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