Hotel Online Special Report
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John Moors, GM, Holiday Inn-Tampa - 
Reports Hotel to Reopen 2/1/99 
After $12-million Renovation 
 
TAMPA, Fla., Nov. 5, 1998 -  A $12-million renovation project underway at the Holiday Inn-Tampa (Near Busch Gardens), 2701 E. Fowler Ave., will transform the hotel into a resort offering superior accommodations to business and pleasure travelers.

Work already is underway at the hotel, which closed Sept. 15 and reopens on February 1st, 1999, as a completely "new" Holiday Inn. The TGI Friday's restaurant at the hotel will continue operations throughout most of the renovation. All of the hotels' four hundred guestrooms will be completely redone in colorful and tropical themes. The areas of the interior and exterior will be entirely renovated, including meeting space capable of seating 300 conference attendees. Other features to be added to the 12-acre resort include:

  • A new water attraction featuring a pirate ship with slides and water cannons.
  • Twenty-five Kids Suites.  Children will have their own space, separated from their parents' area.  In addition to adult queen beds, these suites will include partitioned areas with two bunk beds, a single bed, TV, radio and video games.
  • A Convenience Cafe with a pool-side bar, serving full hot breakfast buffet and light lunch and dinner menus.  Convenience Cafes combine the concepts of a food court, hotel gift shop and entertainment space into one open area of the hotel.
"The new resort will offer something for everyone," said General Manager John Moors. "We will have rooms for families who want to join in the "Busch Gardens" fun, as well as business travelers who are here to work, and combine some Florida style relaxation. The hotel is near corporate parks, the University of South Florida, medical centers and Busch Gardens. We cater to almost every market segment and strive to exceed every guest's expectations."

The Holiday Inn hosted job fairs, in which local businesses came to the hotel and interviewed staff, offered commitment bonuses and transfers, and provided access to job placement for employees displaced by its temporary closure. These employees will be the first invited to apply for positions when the hotel reopens. The hotel's conversion to a resort will create many new jobs.

The Holiday Inn-Tampa (Near Busch Gardens) is operated by Dallas-based Bristol Hotels Resorts (NYSE: BH) and owned by FelCor Lodging Limited Partnership, a subsidiary of FelCor Lodging Trust (NYSE: FCH). Bristol Hotels Resorts is the largest independent hotel operator in the United States and operates the largest number of Bass Hotels and Resorts branded hotels in the world. Bristol's more than 120 hotels include nearly 33,000 rooms in 27 states and Canada. They operate in the mid-priced to upscale segments of the industry and are located in 19 of the top 25 lodging markets in the United States. Bristol operates nearly 100 Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn properties and is a leading franchisee in Bass' billion-and-a-half-dollar modernization program. By the year 2000, Bristol will have overseen the investment of $400 million in the redevelopment of Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn hotels.

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Contact:
John Moors, General Manager, 813-971-4710, 
or Helen Leflar, 
Public Relations Director,
972-391-3535, 
both of Bristol Hotels Resorts, Inc.
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Also See:
Jim Alderman Appointed to VP Acquisitions for Bristol Hotels & Resorts / Sept 1998
Bristol Hotels Resorts Reports 1998 First 6 Months Occupancy of 67.3% vs. Last Year Same Period 70.4% / Aug 1998 

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