Hilton Worldwide
Mclean, Virginia
Promotion: January Sale: 33 Percent Off and 50 Percent Off

Hilton Worldwide went all out this January with a sale the hotel chain has never run before. Guests who booked hotel rooms in January could save 50 percent off weekend getaways throughout the year at Hilton’s participating hotels in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific.

In addition, Hilton offered up to 33 percent off weekend rates at its properties in North America, South America, Central America, Puerto Rico and the Caribbean. Hilton, which sports luxury brands such as Waldorf Astoria to extended stay properties such as Homewood Suites, offered the sale to jump-start its bookings for 2010.

“The sale is a great way to provide incentives to encourage people to make reservations early. It helps drive business to our brands worldwide throughout the year,” said Jeff Diskin, senior VP, global customer marketing for Hilton Worldwide.

Guests who booked rooms at participating Hilton, Doubletree, Embassy Suites Hotels, Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton Inn & Suites, and Homewood Suites brands from 1 January through 31 January, received the discounted rates for Friday-, Saturday- and Sunday-night stays throughout 2010.

By the third week in January, Diskin said the January sales were a “terrific success” but did not share specific numbers.

The 33 percent and 50 percent off sales were kicked off on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, where Hilton Worldwide gave two free night stays to each audience member. They were also advertised in e-mails to Hilton’s HHonors’ members on Twitter, and in U.S. and European magazines and newspapers, including “The Daily Telegraph” of London, “USA Today,” “Sports Illustrated” and “Time.”

In addition, Hilton launched A Night on Us promotion at the start of the year for HHonors’ rewards members. Between 1 January and 31 March 2010, members earn one free night stay for every four stays at any Hilton Worldwide Hotel. Members can sign up for the campaign at www.HiltonHHonors.com/ANightOnUs.

The Reefs Hotel & Club
Southampton, Bermuda
Promotion: Show Your Love Contest

Just in time for Valentine’s Day, The Reefs Hotel & Club launched a Show Your Love Contest, which will award two, six-day, five-night vacations to guests and potential guests.

The Reefs’ club owners and “people who love Bermuda” can show their love for the resort and the island by sharing their favorite experience from 3 February through 14 February. Then, from 18 February through 28 February, the public votes on their favorite Bermuda experiences.

Smartly, the Reefs’ is using the contest to call attention to its new name and Web site. The Reefs’ Hotel and the Reefs Club combined names to form The Reefs Hotel & Club, and the hotel and club now share a Web site: www.TheReefs.com.

“The contest was created to drive traffic to the new Web site … create awareness of the new name and emphasize The Reefs’ experience. The Reefs is a favorite among honeymooners and couples seeking a romantic getaway,” said Madigan Pratt, managing director of Madigan Pratt & Associates, the marketing and public relations firm for The Reefs.

In the first 24 hours of the Show Your Love contest, the 64-room resort had already received more than 200 entries. “This is the first time for the ‘Show Your Love’ contest and, so far, it has been very well-received,” Pratt said.

The contest is being promoted via social media, e-mail marketing, and public relations to the U.S., Canada and the U.K.

“We announced the contest … with a press release, e-postcard to The Reefs Hotel & Club’s database, and on Facebook,” Pratt said.

Hotel Fouquet’s Barriere
Paris, France
Promotion: For Everlasting Love and Very Important Planet packages

Marketing executives with the Hotel Fouquet’s Barriere get double kudos for developing original Valentine’s Day and green packages.

The luxury property’s eco-friendly For Everlasting Love package features room or suite accommodations; a Fitness Breakfast of fresh, local produce, an egg-white omelet and multi-grain bread; carbon off-setting credits through the non-profit organization Action Carbone; and dinner at Le Fouquet with a bottle of the hotel’s organic Pop-Earth champagne.

“Guests can also arrange a transfer in the hotel’s hybrid limousine, explore the City of Lights on one of the hotel’s electric E-Solex bikes, or book a natural spa treatment …” according to a statement from Hotel Fouquet’s Barriere.

Available from 12 February through 14 February, the package is priced starting at €970 (US$1,356).

Also, with all the green and eco-friendly packages out there, it is nice to see a different offering with the hotel’s VIP (Very Important Planet) package. The package features: accommodations, a “Fitness Breakfast,” organic lunch for two at the hotel’s Joy Gallery, a bottle of eco-friendly Pop Earth Champagne, a 50-minute natural oil treatment in the hotel’s spa, and carbon off-setting credits via Action Carbone.

The package, available through 28 December, 2010, is priced starting at €990 (US$1,436).

The eco-friendly packages are part of what the property calls its “Dignified Luxury” concept. “For us, Dignified Luxury means living in an eco-friendly manner while focusing on environmental issues. We aim to offer guests reasonable environmental options they may adopt whenever they wish,” said Eric Boonstoppel, managing director of the hotel.

To that end, guests can also choose to dine on organic produce at the hotel’s Le Diane restaurant, utilize the hotel’s electric bikes or enjoy the hotel’s fair trade flowers and fruit juices.