I'm blogging today from the brand new Courtyard by Marriott at the Newport News Airport in southeastern Virginia. Today we're celebrating Courtyard's 25th anniversary. We opened the first one in 1983 and there are a lot of alums here today who were at the first opening and who continued on with our company to today.
Since the very beginning, Courtyard has been a leader in the lodging industry, known for being innovative and specifically catering to the needs of business travelers. Twenty five years later, we're still leading the pack. We're continuing to grow, reinvent and innovate. We're in more than 30 different countries now and we'll have our 800th hotel open in 2009.
But this is really a different and exciting hotel. When you walk in the lobby, it's a real "wow." You get to see a lot of color, a lot of space, a brand new food and beverage operation, a new market where you can grab and go and take things with you when you leave to eat on the road or wherever you're going.
I toured the property today and I was very impressed with the size and the expansion of the health club, the outdoor seating area where you have a fire pit, a beautiful indoor pool, a lot of meeting space and the guest rooms are just fabulous - over the top. Some of them are extended into nice suites that reach out over the driveway and are really very unique and creative.
We've got a lot of new pictures of the new design concepts and even some videos from this event on our gocourtyard.com site. I hope you'll check it out to see for yourselves where the brand is heading.
You know, when we decided to do Courtyard, we did a little research. We asked our customers what they wanted and one million dollars of research funds, we found out they wanted a better room at a lower price. Courtyard still has the best rooms at the best price.
It was wonderful to celebrate this 25th anniversary with all those people who worked so hard to make the brand successful. Here's to another 25 fantastic years!
I'm Bill Marriott and thanks for helping me keep Marriott on the move.
Celebrating 25 Years of Courtyard Hotels
The Courtyard Hotel chain is a great for the business traveler. Whenever I have stayed in one, I have received great customer service and the rooms are great for the price. Courtyards always seem located in the best locations, at least for me, and I appreciate that when visiting a city/town where I have never visited. Thank you!
Posted by: Jennifer Abbott | 11/05/2008 at 12:14 PM
I just have to post another comment regarding Courtyard Hotels after reading Joshua Katt comment. I strongly disagree with his comment. I spent last weekend at the Courtyard at Denver airport. The rooms were OUTSTANDING. My wife could not get over how beautiful our room was. The decor was really well done, the bed very comfortable and most importantly the service was EXCELLENT! In any brand or tier of hotels there will be those that are newer or have been recently refurbished and those that are ready for updating. I think Marriott has done an excellent job of keeping Courtyard properties attractive and up-to-date. A few other Courtyard hotels that I think are beautiful are: Montreal Airport (in my opinion the most upscale Courtyard), San Francisco Downtown (I personally like it better than the full-service Marriott), Isla Verde Beach in Puerto Rico and Medford Oregon Airport. Like Joshua comments, there are some less desirable Courtyard properties. The Courtyard in New Haven is at the bottom of my list primarily because of the decor. Yet, I would stay there again if in the area.
Posted by: Hank Mancini | 11/04/2008 at 10:19 AM
Congradulations on your 25 years!! Courtyards have certainly been a dependable source of comfort and hospitality. And blessings for 25 more!!
Strength & Wisdom
Jason
Posted by: Jason Moore | 11/04/2008 at 05:26 AM
As part of the 25 year celebration Marriott is offering a 10% bonus on giftcards, which might be of interest to some folks here.
http://www.acouplethings.com/blog/2008/11/good-travel-deal-from-marriottcom-10-bonus-on-gift-cards/
Posted by: Scholar in Training | 11/02/2008 at 01:25 AM
Congrads on your 25th! I love staying at the courtyard!
Posted by: Daniel Ryan Lucero | 11/01/2008 at 08:33 AM
I am a huge fan of Marriott with platinum status for 5+ years and 1.5 million unused points. I stay up and down the Marriott brands from JW's to Townplace Suites. I've stayed in 15 different Courtyards and hated them all. I don't see what the appeal is for this tired old brand nor see the savings either. Usually, another $10 will get you into a real Marriott with concierge lounges, better staff and services. The mantra designed by business travelers for business travelers has to be the best marketing gimmick ever invented. I understand a big effort is being made to upgrade new Courtyards but the old dogs still remain so I'll stay away regardless of how much lipstick is put on this dog of a brand!
Posted by: Joshua Katt | 10/31/2008 at 04:03 AM
Courtyard taking a very late entry in india.while Ibis and Indian Hotel chain Gateway and Ginger putting strong hold in this segment what are your future move in this regard.
Writer is exMarriott Front Desk Manager and at present Academic-Head Of Dept.-Rooms Division at International Institute of Hotel Management, Gurgaon, India( Institute affiliated to Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK)
Posted by: Ravi Sharma | 10/30/2008 at 06:28 PM
Congrats on 25 years of Courtyard Success! I think that my first Courtyard is what is now called the Costa Mesa South Coast Metro, probably in 1987 or 1988. I really like and appreciate the new Courtyard hotels. They just keep getting better and better each year!
Keep building them and we'll keep coming!
Posted by: Hank Mancini | 10/30/2008 at 03:06 PM