Some Top Hotels Using Kids’ Stuff to Attract Traveling Families

The hotel room was oddly shaped. Its plumbing was old. And the street view was partly blocked by a newly built hotel tower. Executives at the 65-year-old Ritz-Carlton hotel in Boston knew that they could no longer ask $235 a night for it.

What to do?

They did what any clever marketer would do: They repositioned it. The room was renamed the “Junior Presidential Suite.” The hotel revamped the room’s interior design then loaded it with gobs of toys and munchies. Oh, yes, and the nightly rate has doubled to $500.

Come on now. You had it this good when you were a kid, didn’t you? Well, this may be an extreme example of how a growing number of companies are appealing to grown-ups through their kids. But it is just one way that hotels are marketing directly to families.

The idea for the Ritz-Carlton junior presidential suite was hatched last spring. By fall, the hotel room was converted with an adjoining room for parents. Since then, the suite has been occupied seven out of 10 nights.

“All people really need is a bed, running water and heat,” said Patricia Cutler, director of public relations at the hotel. “But with people putting so much energy into the family these days, we figured it would be nice for them to know that they could travel with the family and have all the comforts of home.”

Comforts, indeed. The room, which was redesigned to suit infants to 12-year-olds, comes complete with specially designed beds, tables and even child-sized bathroom fixtures. The toy chest is jammed with everything from Lego toys to Nintendo software. The refrigerator comes stocked with goodies ranging from fruit juices to candy bars. There’s a TV set strategically placed in the bathroom. And before the kids go to bed, cookies are sent up from the bakery with the children’s names written on them in icing.

Parents who want some privacy can always close their door. But beware: The kids might be listening in via the suite’s room-to-room intercom system.

While the hotel spent about $50,000 to make this the ultimate kiddie playpen, it also tried to make the room trouble-proof. The windows open only two inches. The unused electrical outlets are plugged. And there are no “aggressive” toys, such as guns or GI Joe dolls, in the room.

In fact, about the only time that trouble comes along is when parents try to step into the kids’ portion of the suite. “The children sometimes become territorial about the room and don’t want their parents in it,” Cutler said.

While the Ritz-Carlton might be taking it to an extreme, hotels are marketing to families as never before. The fact is, the dual-income family has led to more frequent but shorter family vacations. And with room occupancy nationwide at about 63% today compared to 66% five years ago, the battle for business is getting increasingly ferocious.

About a year ago, Hyatt introduced its “Camp Hyatt” concept, which offers kids everything from special activities to kiddie menus that feature “Pee Wee Pancakes” and “Big Fat Wizard Waffles.”

“Kids used to be a rare sight in hotels,” said Carrie Rekert, director of public relations at Hyatt Corp. “Now, 10% of business trips include children.”

Marriott and Hilton also offer family specials. And so eager is Hilton to attract families that it hired a research firm to survey 300 children about what they’d want in an ideal hotel.

“We realized we didn’t know a lot about what kids themselves thought about travel,” said Joanie Flynn, director of leisure marketing at Hilton Hotels. About 93% of the kids said they wanted VCRs with free movies in every room. As a result, Hilton may test-market that concept and could eventually expand it chain-wide.

An additional 59% of the kids said they wanted a special concierge for children. So Hilton is already looking into that, too. As for the 61% who said they’d like a petting zoo, well, Hilton says that won’t happen. But it hasn’t ruled out putting animal crackers in every room.

Most hotel industry experts say marketing to children is a good idea. But when informed of the Ritz-Carlton’s junior presidential suite, several could hardly believe it.

“Oh, my Lord,” said Michele Kelley, spokeswoman for the American Hotel & Motel Assn. “For $500 you could buy a nanny for a month.” Nannies are not included in the Ritz-Carlton’s junior presidential suite rate. But baby-sitters are available for an additional $7 per hour.

“It sounds like American overindulgence,” said Voit Gilmore, president of the American Society of Travel Agents. “When I think of all the starving children there are in this world, I can only hope the publicity on this will stay pretty much inside the United States.”

At Motel 6, where nightly room rates are lower than some dinner entrees at the Ritz-Carlton, executives were aghast. “I hope this doesn’t reflect the current state of the country,” said Hugh Thrasher, marketing director for the Motel 6 chain. “The super-rich may be interested in frivolity, but this is too much.”

Not everyone thinks that the Ritz-Carlton has such a bad idea. “Because of the oversupply of rooms, the hotel industry has gone from being an operations-driven industry to one that is marketing driven,” said Melinda Bush, publisher of Hotel & Travel Index. “I like the idea. But they may have to lower the registration desks and replace the pens with Crayolas.”

Sears Real Estate to Get Coldwell Banker Name

A new image--and new name--will soon be created for one of the oldest names in real estate.

The Coldwell Banker Commercial Group handed that estimated $5-million image-changing task last week to the Los Angeles ad agency Della Femina, McNamee WCRS Inc. The account was formerly handled by the Los Angeles office of J. Walter Thompson.

“It’s a fabulous task,” said Peter Stranger, president of the agency’s Los Angeles office. “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” But Stranger knows that it won’t be easy. Witness the troubles that Nissan suffered for years while changing its name from Datsun to Nissan.

The commercial real estate division of Coldwell Banker was formerly owned by Sears. But following a recent management buyout, the company has only until 1992 to use the Coldwell Banker name. “When you change the name, you lose all of the heritage,” Stranger said. “We’ll have to find a position that’s different, then find advertising to communicate it.”

Rock Stars Joining Anti-Drug Campaigns

Can rock ‘n’ roll help fight drug abuse?

Teen heartthrob Michael Damian, star of “The Young and the Restless” TV show, is appearing in an anti-drug ad campaign that is targeting high school students across Los Angeles. On one side, the split-picture ad features Damian, who recorded the hit song “Rock On” last summer, next to the headline: “This rock & roll will never die.” On the other side is a picture of rock cocaine and a hand rolling a joint. The headline under that picture states: “This rock & roll will kill you.”

The ads, which are appearing on bus benches, billboards and in bus shelters, were created by the Los Angeles agency Wilson Scott Associates for the newly formed organization, A Drug-Free Los Angeles. Other rock stars will be featured in future ads. One constant worry is that graffiti by gangs or drug dealers will wipe out the messages. “Sure, there’s been some of that,” said Michael S. Wilson, president of the agency. “But outside high schools, we’ve also seen that people have deliberately left some of the ads alone.”

Search for Australian Realism Boomeranged

Some agencies will go through just about anything to film a TV spot.

Just ask DBC Advertising. The Los Angeles agency recently filmed a commercial for the new “Boomerang” roller coaster at Knott’s Berry Farm. The ride will begin operation on April 7.

The agency contacted six casting agencies to help locate an authentic aborigine dancer. It finally found 19-year-old Steve Simon, who lives in the outback of Australia. Simon was flown to Mexico, where part of the ad was filmed, then to an island in Lake Powell, Ariz., where the second portion of the ad was shot.

But when the agency needed an ace boomerang thrower, it didn’t have to go to Australia. It hired the world champion boomerang thrower, Eric Dranell, an American Indian from New York.