Can someone explain why Tampa Bay does not have a 4 or 5-star hotel? (Sarasota: luxury, living)

[chi_tino]

Originally Posted by MAniacTHW

When city leaders start treating Tampa like a big city, we might start getting big city perks. In the meantime, we have a downtown that's used for nothing but business, urban sprawl planning, next to no public transit, and no reason for anyone to want to come to Tampa.

I think you may have posted a reply to the wrong discussion.

We are talking about visitors that drop $500 a night on a hotel. These people don't take the bus, nor do they have a desire to hang out in Valrico.

[stpeteguy]

Originally Posted by saltzman143

Neither the Vinoy (a Marriott) nor the D. Cesar (a Loews) are comparable to a Ritz Carlton or a Mandarin Oriental. Not even close. They are basically Hilton-quality hotels. The last time I had a client come to town he asked me where the Ritz was (these people do not stay at Hiltons). I had to say, "Orlando."

By the way it is a myth that you have to pay 500 dollars a night to have 5 star quality. Many Ritz Carlton rooms can be had for $200. But the level of service FEELS like $500.

It's unfortunate that a metro area the size of Tampa Bay lacks these iconic luxury brands.

As an aside, I have often found that hotels in Florida in general are lacking in quality and service and are extremely worn and sometimes dirty. I have attributed this to the onslaught of tourists. But with so many tourists, you would think that there would be a 5 star hotel in this area.

Oh puleez!

If they don't have the money to have their private jet fly them to the nearest 5 star hotel, maybe they need to learn live within their means and stay at the local 4 star instead.

[saltzman143]

Since you are "stpeteguy" I'm sure then you are familiar with the competition currently being held to re-design the St. Petersburg Pier? Well, the architects who are finalists in that competition were recently in town for a site visit, and one of them was quoted as saying, "Nice views, but why doesn't this town have a decent hotel?"

It's more about perceptions than private jets.

Perhaps you don't think this is a big deal. Perhaps a Days Inn is luxurious enough for you. But again, small thinking will not get us (as a community) very far. We must think big and dream big. The local economy depends on it.

I think a previous poster poses a great question: Why does Sarasota have a 5 star hotel, and Tampa Bay does not?

[thethinktank]

Originally Posted by saltzman143

I think a previous poster poses a great question: Why does Sarasota have a 5 star hotel, and Tampa Bay does not?

It's a question of development. The Tampa Bay developed on a vacation/retirement boom, with nearly all of the usable land in Pinellas (and within the Tampa city limits) being quickly developed within the same period. Last weekend, I spent a night in a suite at the Hyatt in Clearwater, a hotel which isn't yet two years old. From my balcony, the hotels in the distance were nearly all products of the 60s, with the exception of one or two newer buildings that came as a result of land demolition (like the Hyatt itself).

Look at St. Pete Beach-- it feels like little has changed since the 1950s/60s in terms of architecture. Would you build a 4-star resort in a landscape like that and expect luxury visitors to even want to leave the grounds? I'm more interested in the opposite, where companies like The Postcard Inn (St Pete Beach Hotel | St Petersburg Hotels | Postcard Inn on the Beach) find beauty in the old with a modern restoration. That's the kind of turn-around in character that, if continued, ultimately attracts the big box brands to a new area.

So why Sarasota? And in turn, why Naples? In Naples and Sarasota, sprawl is not a problem like it is here. They developed in a wholly different era. Naples has two Ritz Carltons-- one on the beach, and one in a gated community. They and much of the North Naples / Naples Park environment were built during the construction boom of the 1990s. This area had plenty of beachfront construction opportunities that the Tampa Bay just didn't have. Land was cheaper, the area focused more exclusively on the wealthy, and everything is located within a mile or two of the beach.

[algia]

Because Tampa does not entertain That crowd!

Originally Posted by planedition

I am talking about a Ritz Carlton, a Four Seasons, a Mandarin Oriental, a Relais & Châteaux property, etc. I can only imagine that when celebs and billionaires come to town, they must be very perplexed by the lack of 4-5 star accommodations here. Where did these people stay when the Super Bowl was here?

By the way, Hiltons, Hyatts, InterContinentals, these are all "crappy" hotels by comparison to a 4 or 5 star hotel.

Before we aim to build a new St. Pete Pier or a Rays stadium in Downtown Tampa or any other big project, Tampa Bay REALLY needs to get a 4 or 5 star hotel built here.

In fact, when the GOP convention comes to town, I wonder where the heavyweights will stay. At the Doubletree????

[algia]

& How many of these ppl visit Tampa often, and for what purpose?

Originally Posted by chi_tino

I think you may have posted a reply to the wrong discussion.

We are talking about visitors that drop $500 a night on a hotel. These people don't take the bus, nor do they have a desire to hang out in Valrico.

[stpeteguy]

Originally Posted by saltzman143

Since you are "stpeteguy" I'm sure then you are familiar with the competition currently being held to re-design the St. Petersburg Pier? Well, the architects who are finalists in that competition were recently in town for a site visit, and one of them was quoted as saying, "Nice views, but why doesn't this town have a decent hotel?"

It's more about perceptions than private jets.

Perhaps you don't think this is a big deal. Perhaps a Days Inn is luxurious enough for you. But again, small thinking will not get us (as a community) very far. We must think big and dream big. The local economy depends on it.

I think a previous poster poses a great question: Why does Sarasota have a 5 star hotel, and Tampa Bay does not?

Umm...I think we have plenty of nice hotels here.

Obviously, number of people willing to drop the kind of money your talking about must be very small or else some enterprising entrepreneur would have already built a 5 or 6 or even a 7 star hotel.

[user8]

lol. i think tampa has bigger fish to fry than worry about having a 5 star hotel right now.

[chi_tino]

Originally Posted by user8

lol. i think tampa has bigger fish to fry than worry about having a 5 star hotel right now.

Imagine the waves of homeless scum congregating at the Tampa Ritz-Carlton every morning, looking for handouts from people who actually work for a living. It would look like a scene out of a third-world documentary...

[planedition]

Well I did a litle research and yes, there was a plan for a Ritz in 2008 but then the recession happened. But there's no question that you can't compare a 5 star hotel like a Ritz or a Four Seasons to the hotels the area has now.



Plus ask any civic or business leader and they will tell you that besides stoking civic PRIDE, luxury brands like Ritz bring BUSINESS. In fact, the GOP counted the lack of a "five-star hotel" as a strike against Tampa's bid for their national convention. They are coming anyway, but prepare to hear a lot of moaning and groaning over the substandard accommodations and the "dumps" they'll have to endure for many many days. These politicos are accustomed to a lot more luxury than a Doubletree. I'm sure they'll be complaining about why they didn't do the convention in Orlando or Miami, which both have 5 star hotels galore. I feel sorry for whoever made the decision to choose Tampa. They will need a thick skin.

I can almost picture the article in the paper specifically about how all the GOP honchos and the national media are complaining about the 3-star Tampa hotels, the cleanliness, the substandard A/C in AUGUST, etc.

And FYI, according to the St. Pete Times, the area attracts enough high-spending visitors to support a luxury hotel with average daily rates above $350, says Lou Plasencia, chief executive of the Plasencia Group in Tampa, which brokers hotel sales nationwide.