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Hitometer
(Since Oct. 7, 1999)

   

Airport Meetings Put

Associations to Work

By Bob Andelman

 

(Written in March 1993 for Association Meetings magazine)

 

Four years ago, Stephen Lefebvre scheduled the annual one-day meeting of the executive board and standing committees of the National Art Materials Trade Association for midtown Manhattan. He hasn't been back since.

That's no slap at the Big Apple's ability to host NAMTA or the quality of its accommodations and meeting space. It's a question of convenience, time and cost effectiveness. Lefebvre is one of a growing number of meeting planners choosing to hold executive board, committee, training and small association meetings at airport hotels.

Whether they're literally located on the grounds of an airport or in the immediate vicinity, airport hotels nationwide have maintained their occupancy levels in recent years with greater ease than their downtown counterparts, according to Robert Mandelbaum, director of research for PKF Consulting. "In most markets, airport hotels are doing better than the overall average," he says. Fly-in, fly-out meetings are a reason for their success.

There are several reasons for meeting at an airport hotel. "When we're in a city like Chicago or Dallas, it's a whole lot easier for our members to fly in, hop a shuttle to an airport hotel and leave the same way," says Dobby Wall, director of meeting services for the American Physical Therapy Association. "It's really practical. That's the only reason we do it." Wall, who schedules three meetings a year at airports, says she looks for hotels with complimentary shuttles so visiting association guests can take at least a brief meal off the airport grounds.

As transportation and lodging costs expand, association travel budgets are more often than not contracting. And time is an ever-increasing commodity. So for Stephen Lefebvre, schlepping the 60 members of NAMTA's committees from outlying airports into midtown Manhattan for a one-day meeting was no longer an attractive option.

"The cost of bringing everybody in and the cost of their night at the hotel is borne by the association," Lefebvre says. "So whatever the association can do to lessen the cost, we do."

Three years ago, Lefebvre made a decision to move the annual executive board and committee meetings to the Newark Airport Marriott, on the grounds of Newark International Airport . "For what we're doing, it works fine," Lefebvre says. "The cost of a New York City hotel versus the Airport Marriott is substantial. It may not be glamorous but it's very functional. It's a well-maintained hotel and their response to our needs is good."

Airports work best for short duration meetings - boards, executive councils, committees and training sessions. They're also popular for short, but necessary international meetings.

"Our hotel is designed for executive board meetings," says Mark Douglass, director of sales for the O'Hare Hilton. "The second floor has 45 pre-set conference rooms which can each seat 16 people. We go after executive and planning meetings; we can't do annual meetings because our largest room is 3,600 square feet." Douglass says the hotel has twice hosted NFL owners meetings.

Mary Livingstone, conference/trade show coordinator for the American Association for Artificial Intelligence, chose the Sheraton Imperial Hotel near Raleigh-Durham International Airport for the association's 1993 annual fall symposium.

"Our association has members come in from all over the world," Livingstone says. "Just getting to the hotel is a big chore for many of them. If you've got international attendees, they've already gone many miles. They come in at all hours of the day and evening and it's hard to get into town. That's why I think a courtesy shuttle is a pretty good selling point."

Transportation ease aside, Livingstone worked within fairly rigid instructions before choosing Raleigh. "My boss gave me these directions: An urban setting. And a rural setting. They wanted it all. I knew I was looking for something next to an airport."

Not just any airport will do, however. For virtually any association to meet at an airport hotel, the facility must be a transportation hub of some measure to keep airfare affordable. "We chose Raleigh," Livingstone says, "because it's someplace different. They have a decent airport, American Airlines has a hub there and the rates are much less expensive."

In Northern California, where Livingstone is based, the lack of public transportation makes airport hotels with courtesy shuttles very desirable for short meetings. "We would never book a convention if you had to rent a car to get there," she says.

CITY IN POINT: ATLANTA

The world is coming to Atlanta in 1996 for the Summer Olympics, but don't expect to see a spate of new hotels - airport or otherwise - come out of the ground. PKF Consulting's Atlanta office reports that the airport area has already added 11 new hotel properties since 1989, bringing the total to 67.

"It's very competitive," says PKF/Atlanta senior associate Mark von Dwingelo. "All the major chains are represented at least once." The latest arrival is the Stouffer Concourse Hotel. "It's literally on the edge of the runway," von Dwingelo says. "You look out your window as you're landing and there's Stouffer."

Despite the apparent abundance of lodging options, von Dwingelo says the Atlanta airport district has consistently maintained average occupancies above 60 percent for the last decade. "In relation to the rest of Atlanta, you've got very competitive rates in the airport area," von Dwingelo says. The average room rate for Metro Atlanta was $60 in 1992; at the airport it was $52.60. "And they're beating each other up for small to medium meetings.

SOUNDPROOF?

Joan Eisenstodt calls airport meetings "the most under-utilized resource in the industry."

Not enough planners take advantage of airport hotels, in Eisenstodt's view. The president of Washington, D.C.-based Eisenstodt Associates thinks planners don't generally understand airport facilities, looking upon them as strictly for transients. Planners create artificial mental barriers to scheduling small or short meetings at airports when such events could be a great boon to association members and staffs alike.

"They're convenient, they have excellent space and they're soundproof," Eisenstodt says. "Planners assume you're going to hear every plane and you really don't."

Soundproofing is in the ear of the listener, of course.

"I'm going to tell you we're soundproof," says Maryann McGranahan, director of sales for the new Hyatt Regency Orlando International Airport. "But you're only going to believe that and convince other people if you come and hear for yourself."

SPECIAL SERVICES

Convenience is exemplified in Chicago at the O'Hare Hilton. Renovated from top-to-bottom, the Hilton reopened in July 1992 with an attractive new service: guests flying in or out on American Airlines could check their hotel bags at Hilton's American satellite desk when they arrive at O'Hare or confirm their departing flight reservations at American's satellite desk at the Hilton.

But even before check-in, Marriott offers a service called Executive Meeting Managers (EMM). Planners of small meetings can call any Marriott, ask for an EMM and be routed directly to that person without wasting time talking to secretaries or intermediaries. "They're not handling any other business," says Linn Corfield, director of marketing at the O'Hare Marriott Hotel. "They can give you all the information you need with one phone call. We have a motto: 'Handle the call, take no messages.' If the planner knows what they want to do, we can book their meeting on the first call."

LOCATION

Chicago and Dallas are often mentioned as popular cities for quick airport meetings because they're so centrally located and are major airline hubs. But the same kind of geographic analysis can work to the advantage of a well-positioned airport hotel when it comes to attracting state associations.

"We do an awful lot of business with Florida associations," says Maryann McGranahan, director of sales for the Hyatt Regency Orlando International Airport. "The locals drive here and people from Tallahassee, Jacksonville and Miami fly in. We're in Orlando, one of the busiest airports in the U.S. There are hotels and meeting facilities but nothing like what we have here at the airport. It's not just a place to put your head if your flight is canceled or you miss your flight."

Located within Orlando's new main airport terminal, the Hyatt Regency eliminates not only the need for rental cars but there isn't much walking required either, thanks to new moving sidewalks.

RATES & OCCUPANCY

Robert Mandelbaum says that in general, airport hotels can beat their downtown counterparts on price, but that's due to far fewer amenities, from stylish rooms to choice of dining and shopping experiences. But if you're flying in to work, that shouldn't be a drawback.

"Downtown hotels tend to be more expensive," Mandelbaum says. "Airport hotels can't charge as much because their costs are not as much. It's a relative price savings but convenience is still the relative point upon which airport hotels sell themselves."

One of the drawbacks of airport meetings can be the lack of room nights. If everyone flies in and out on the same day as the meeting, the hotel doesn't make much on sleeping rooms. The hotel, in turn, will charge an association full rate for renting its meeting spaces.

But it doesn't have to be that cut and dried. Meeting room rentals can also be mitigated by food at many hotels.

"If you're going to get a meeting room that would normally rent for $200 and you're only using two rooms, we're probably going to want to charge full rental," Marriott's Corfield says. "But if you guarantee we'll also have a full meal, we may take that rental down to $150. We look at total revenue."

Here's another angle for the budget-conscious planner, offered by Mark Douglass of the O'Hare Hilton. He says that Saturday meetings can be real cost-savers to association members willing to give up a piece of their weekend. Airfares are cheaper with Saturday night stay-overs and airport hotels are generally desperate to book meeting space on Saturdays, so the savings could be significant. "We try to use that as a selling point," Douglass says. "Associations save overall by paying less on rooms and airfare."

CHART
Selected Airport Markets
Hotel Average Daily Room Rates

1992 1991
Dallas

Airport $65.18 $65.20

Metropolitan Area $61.02 $60.05

 

Houston (Intercontinental)

Airport $53.43 $54.36

Metropolitan Area $61.61 $60.16

 

Atlanta

Airport $52.60 $54.79

Metropolitan Area $59.72 $61.46

 

New Orleans

Airport $51.57 $50.09

Metropolitan Area $81.45 $77.64

 

Los Angeles

Airport $53.36 $55.85

Metropolitan Area $75.25 $76.75

 

Denver

Airport $60.62 $59.56

Metropolitan Area $58.62 $57.07

Chicago

Airport $67.88 $68.57

Metropolitan Area $86.47 $86.82

 

Phoenix

Airport $61.65 $59.98

Metropolitan Area $70.64 $69.52

 

Philadelphia

Airport $69.25 $69.25

Metropolitan Area $88.50 $89.25

 

San Francisco

Airport $65.51 $65.05

Metropolitan Area $83.72 $83.31

SOURCE: PKF Consulting

 

WHAT'S NEW

Chicago: O'Hare International Airport will open a $489-million new international terminal this summer. It will be served by 22 carriers and cover more than 1-million square feet. A fully automated people mover transit system will link the new terminal to domestic terminals.

Denver: An entirely new regional, Denver International Airport, will open in December 1993. It will be the world's largest in terms of size - 52 square acres - and will feature a translucent, cable-tensioned membrane roof made of a Teflon-coated fabric. Located half an hour from downtown, DIA is twice the distance of old Stapleton International Airport but it will be linked to Interstate 70 by a new 12-mile expressway. There are no hotels under construction near the new airport, so it will be served - in the interim, at least - by hotels at Stapleton.

Dallas-Fort Worth: Two new parking garages - 3,000 slots in all - opened at the American and Delta terminals in 1992.

Atlanta: Three major projects are in the works for Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport, which opened in 1981: 1) A $300-million international concourse will open in Spring, 1994, with 24 gates. 2) A 3-story atrium is being built between the north and south terminals to house a food court, retail and offices. It will be ready by late '94. 3) The existing concessions areas are being refurbished and expanded. One likely attraction: the largest airport bookstore in the country.

Orlando: Instead of scheduling it as an intermediate stop on the way to somewhere else, Orlando International Airport has become a major destination for virtually all carriers serving the airport. That has translated into more non-stop and direct flights, both domestic and international.

Ten-thousand new parking spaces were created in recent years, plus a five-pad heliport atop one of the new parking decks. Also new is a computerized multi-user flight information system which pulls information from the computers of all airlines serving the airport, sorts flight data alphabetically and posts and updates it constantly. And a corridor of land through the 14,000-acre airport has been set aside to connect the airport and Disney World via magnetic levitation -- "maglev" -- train.

Atlantic City: A $17-million expansion of Atlantic City International Airport is in the works to start later this year, including $12-million in improvements to the airport terminal. It is expected to generate interest by more national carriers to begin daily scheduled service.

 

Selected Airport Markets
Hotel Occupancies

 

1992 1991
Dallas

Airport 73.8% 68.5%

Metropolitan Area 64.7% 60.7%

 

Houston (Intercontinental)

Airport 58.6% 56.7%

Metropolitan Area 62.5% 62.6%

 

Atlanta

Airport 64.9% 64.1%

Metropolitan Area 63.1% 60.3%

 

New Orleans

Airport 74.1% 66.1%

Metropolitan Area 71.1% 67.2%

 

Los Angeles

Airport 67.9% 70.1%

Metropolitan Area 61.1% 63.2%

 

Denver

Airport 64.3% 63.2%

Metropolitan Area 64.0% 61.7%

 

Chicago

Airport 69.3% 65.2%

Metropolitan Area 62.8% 62.3%

 

Phoenix

Airport 67.0% 63.6%

Metropolitan Area 63.9% 60.8%

 

Philadelphia

Airport 62.0% 65.0%

Metropolitan Area 63.0% 60.0%

 

San Francisco

Airport 71.2% 67.4%

Metropolitan Area 67.9% 66.4%

end

 

©2000, All rights reserved. No portion may be reproduced without the express written permission of the author.


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