Fashion-inspired, chic and contemporary hotel opens in vibrant Herald
Square neighborhood
CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Hyatt
Hotels Corporation (NYSE:H) and Chesapeake Lodging Trust (NYSE:CHSP)
(the “Trust”) today announced the opening of Hyatt
Herald Square New York. Ideally located in Midtown Manhattan’s
lively Herald Square neighborhood, the 122-room hotel draws on
inspiration from the area’s rich publishing history and neighboring
Fashion District – both of which serve as inspiration for the hotel’s
design, dining, services and amenities.
Hyatt Herald Square (Photo: Business Wire)
“Hyatt Herald Square is ideally located in the center of the lively
Hyatt Herald Square neighborhood,” said
Candice Cancino
, general
manager, Hyatt Herald Square. “The hotel captures the spirit of this
district and inspires guests to explore the best that the area has to
offer. We are excited to welcome our first and future guests.”
“After more than a year of planning and execution of our plans, we are
excited to introduce the new Hyatt Herald Square New York,” said
James
L. Francis
, president and chief executive officer of the Trust. “Every
aspect of this hotel was carefully designed with the nearby Herald
Square and Fashion District in mind, drawing inspiration from and
celebrating the rich history of these important industries. We are
looking forward to bringing both guests and local New York residents a
unique and contemporary hotel and dining experience in one of New York
City’s most revitalized neighborhoods.”
Design and Guestrooms
Located on West 31st Street between 5th Avenue and
Broadway, the building housing Hyatt Herald Square New York has been
designed by famed interior designers
Paul Vega
and
Vennie Lau
of VLDG
Inc., who studied the history of Herald Square to procure the design
elements and palettes for the hotel’s lobby, hallways, guestrooms, and
rooftop.
Every aspect of the hotel’s design exudes a mixture of fashion and
industrial newspaper printing elements, composed of bright pops of
colors, glass, custom fabrics and millwork, reclaimed wood, letterpress
blocks, pounded metal and other nuanced details. The lobby, adorned with
the artwork of nine local artists, serves as its own destination. The
inviting lobby features several themed communal areas including an
espresso bar with café counter, an on-site market for on-the-go snacks
and a library-themed lounge, bar and private dining space with
comfortable seating and a bookshelf. Upon arrival, hotel ambassadors
will personally greet each guest and invite them to experience the lobby
or head to their guestroom. To create a seamless experience between
check-in and settling in, the traditional check-in desk experience has
been abandoned for a smooth, bowl-shaped desk toward the back of the
lobby sitting in front of a curved metal door with embossed lettering.
This is located steps away from the hotel’s comfortable bar and lounge.
Adjacent to the check-in area, a small concierge desk made from
decorative newspaper stacks of different colors and textures fields
guest requests and questions.
Sustainable LED lighting designed by Brooklyn-based manufacturer
Stickbulb will be on display in a customized installation of wooden
beams of varying lengths, further adding to the lobby’s industrial feel.
Glass block upholsters with LED lights on the walls provide a shimmering
effect on gold colored Maharam fabric wallpaper.
The guestrooms are designed with a natural and neutral palette, allowing
the design and fashion-inspired decor to stand out. The dark, rich wood
furniture found in the rooms is accented with pops of hot pink, a
recurring color throughout the hotel. As a nod to both the publishing
and fashion industries, an in-room letterpress block feature includes a
quote from famed fashion designers. Letterpress blocks are also used to
indicate the room numbers on all 122 guestrooms, including the Penthouse
suite located on the 18th floor. Each floor also has a
different custom-made panel outside the elevators indicating the floor
number. These panels, created by artist
Vicky Chan
, all feature the same
hot pink accent found in guestrooms and a fashion-inspired image. Guests
can choose between king or double rooms with features including
retail-inspired open armoires where guests can display personal clothing
items, desks that double as vanities, patterned couches with
multi-textured throw pillows and artwork panels on the ceilings and
walls. In place of a lamp, the bedside lighting feature is a chain link
lantern attached to a down light, which adds elegance and softness to
the room and evokes the style of a necklace. The spacious bathrooms
include stand-in showers and C.O. Bigelow amenities. Guestrooms contain
stunning views of the Manhattan skyline, including the Empire State
Building and Chrysler Building.
Dining
Hyatt Herald Square New York offers three food and beverage outlets,
each with its own distinct identity, headed up by the hotel’s Food &
Beverage Director and Executive Chef
Gunnar Steden
. The hotel’s coffee
bar, Espresso Bar, boasts locally roasted gourmet beans from
Stone Street Coffee Company and offers a wide variety of
barista-prepared espresso, coffee, and specialty drinks, as well as
freshly baked pastries from Balthazar Bakery. While a great option for
an on-the-go caffeine fix, for those dining in, Espresso Bar offers
a separate seating area with swing out stools set in front of an art
installation featuring Dali-inspired clocks. In line with the fashion
theme of the hotel, each clock is set to the local time of a major
fashion capital, including Paris, New York, and Hong Kong. Guests can
also peruse vintage newspapers displayed in stacks around the bar.
The intimate library-themed lobby bar and restaurant, aptly named The
Den, features a casual bistro menu. With emphasis on simple, market
fresh ingredients, the menu offers seasonal dishes in three sizes – Large
Bites, Light Bites, and Even Lighter Bites – making The
Den an ideal option for meals, group sharing, or a quick bite on the
go. The bar also features a dedicated cocktail menu with seasonally
inspired drinks, some of which are infused in-house. Offering a living
room-like feel, The Den includes chairs and tables of varying
heights, a bookshelf with a wide variety of media and fashion-focused
literature and a comfortable seating area with a writing desk. The bar
area looks like a finished bar cart that one might have at home, while
the private dining area seating 18 is modeled after an upscale diner
with modern, mid-century banquettes and quilted chairs.
The hotel’s rooftop lounge Up on 20 boasts stunning views of the
Midtown skyline, as well as both the Empire State Building and Freedom
Tower, and offers a variety of seasonal cocktails, a selection of local
and international beers, wines and spirits as well as the hotel’s small
plates menu. The rooftop is also available for small meetings and events
for up to 100 people.
“We are thrilled to be behind the opening of
Hyatt Herald Square New
York,” said
Ben Seidel
, president and CEO of Real Hospitality, the
hotel’s management company. “This fashion-forward, historical-minded
hotel is sure to be a great go-to-destination for business and leisure
travelers, as well as local New York residents, offering a true taste of
the neighborhood in a contemporary and social setting. We are confident
that the design, food and beverage, accommodations and amenities will
make this hotel stand out as a leader in the industry.”
The term “Hyatt” is used in this release for convenience to refer to
Hyatt Hotels Corporation and/or one or more of its affiliates.
About Hyatt Herald Square
With its proximate location to both Herald Square and the Garment
District, Hyatt Herald Square New York will celebrate two of New York
City’s most important industries – fashion and publishing. This theme is
incorporated in every aspect of the hotel from the interior design by
Paul Vega
of VLDG Inc., to the guestrooms, dining concept, lobby lounge,
and other amenities. A fusion of industrial sophistication and
fashion-forward flare, Hyatt Herald Square New York features 122 rooms
and one grand suite, as well as a free-flowing lobby lounge with a
living-room type feel (Library Lounge); a restaurant and bar (The Den);
an espresso bar (Espresso Bar); and a stunning rooftop bar (Up on 20)
with views of the Empire State Building and surrounding Midtown skyline,
all of which offer local cuisine and seasonal menus of creative
cocktails and market fresh dishes. A neighborhood gem,
Hyatt Herald
Square New York will cater to both leisure guests and locals, and will
be conveniently located just steps away from word-class dining, shopping
and entertainment, including the Empire State Building, Broadway Theater
District, Madison Square Garden, flagship Macy's department store, and
Times Square.
About Hyatt
Hyatt hotels are smaller-sized properties conveniently located in
diverse business and leisure areas. With hotels typically ranging from
150 to 350 rooms, Hyatt hotels offer guests the opportunity to
experience our hospitality in a vibrant environment. Customers include
individual business and leisure travelers, and Hyatt hotels can
accommodate smaller scale business meetings and social gatherings.
About Chesapeake Lodging Trust
Chesapeake Lodging Trust is a self-advised lodging real estate
investment trust (REIT) focused on investments primarily in
upper-upscale hotels in major business and convention markets and, on a
selective basis, premium select-service hotels in urban settings or
unique locations in the United States. The Trust owns 20 hotels with an
aggregate of 6,116 rooms in eight states and the District of Columbia.
Additional information can be found on the Trust’s website at www.chesapeakelodgingtrust.com.
About Real Hospitality Group
Real Hospitality Group (RHG)
is headquartered in Ocean City, MD with a regional office in Midtown
Manhattan in New York City, and comprises a team with more than 400
years of combined hospitality and travel industry experience. The Real
Hospitality Group portfolio includes 51 hotel properties with an
inventory of more than 6,715 rooms in gateway cities that include New
York, Philadelphia and locations in Morgantown, West Virginia as well as
Glens Falls, Montauk, New York and Ocean City, MD. The company is a
recognized service provider for Marriott, Hilton, Starwood, Hyatt,
Wyndham, IHG, and the Choice Hotels brands as well as a collection of
unique independent hotels. RHG focuses on total service property
management, revenue performance, guest satisfaction and business
development for hotels, resorts and investment ownership groups. For
more information, please visit the company website at www.realhospitalitygroup.com.
About Hyatt Hotels Corporation
Hyatt Hotels Corporation, headquartered in Chicago, is a leading global
hospitality company with a proud heritage of making guests feel more
than welcome. Thousands of members of the Hyatt family strive to make a
difference in the lives of the guests they encounter every day by
providing authentic hospitality. The Company's subsidiaries manage,
franchise, license, own and develop hotels, resorts, branded residences
and vacation ownership properties under the Hyatt®, Park Hyatt®,
Andaz®, Grand Hyatt®, Hyatt Regency®, Hyatt Place®, Hyatt
House®, Hyatt Zilara™,
Hyatt Ziva
™, Hyatt Residences® and Hyatt
Residence Club® brand names and have
locations on six continents. As of June 30, 2014, the Company's
worldwide portfolio consisted of 563 properties in 48 countries. For
more information, please visit www.hyatt.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Forward-Looking Statements in this press release, which are not
historical facts, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of
the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Our actual
results, performance or achievements may differ materially from those
expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. In some cases,
you can identify forward-looking statements by the use of words such as
“may,” “could,” “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “seek,” “anticipate,”
“believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “potential,” “continue,” “likely,”
“will,” “would” and variations of these terms and similar expressions,
or the negative of these terms or similar expressions. Such
forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon estimates and
assumptions that, while considered reasonable by us and our management,
are inherently uncertain. Factors that may cause actual results to
differ materially from current expectations include, among others, the
rate and pace of economic recovery following economic downturns; levels
of spending in business and leisure segments as well as consumer
confidence; declines in occupancy and average daily rate; if our
third-party owners, franchisees or development partners are unable to
access the capital necessary to fund current operations or implement our
plans for growth; changes in the competitive environment in our industry
and the markets where we operate; our ability to access the capital
markets; and other risks discussed in the Company's filings with the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Annual Report on
Form 10-K, which filings are available from the SEC. We caution you not
to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which are
made as of the date of this press release. We undertake no obligation to
update publicly any of these forward-looking statements to reflect
actual results, new information or future events, changes in assumptions
or changes in other factors affecting forward-looking statements, except
to the extent required by applicable laws. If we update one or more
forward-looking statements, no inference should be drawn that we will
make additional updates with respect to those or other forward-looking
statements.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/multimedia/home/20141009005340/en/
Source: Hyatt Hotels Corporation