Judge confirms Tourism Marketing District ruling, backs Mayor Filner
from 10 News (March 22, 2013):
“Today’s leisure traveler books in a very short booking window. They look online and boom, they book,” said Bob Rauch, co-owner of the Torrey Hills Hilton Garden Inn. Rauch, a board member of the TMD, said putting San Diego in front of travelers using marketing ads is what makes the difference.
“The San Diego authority spending translates to about 10 to 1,” said Rauch. That means for every dollar spent on marketing, hotels say they make up to 10 times back. So if all million of marketing money in question isn’t spent, that could be a loss of up to 0 million in revenue.
“Right now it’s very damaging,” said Rauch. “It affects the entire economy.
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Obama Care Driving Tough Choices for Hoteliers
from Hotel News Now (March 14, 2013):
Robert A. Rauch, president of San Diego-based R.A. Rauch & Associates, which owns three hotels, manages four and provides consulting services to another 12, estimates that by canceling his company’s insurance plan and absorbing the penalties, he can reduce costs from $250,000 a year to about $100,000. The company pays 75% of the monthly premiums for about 57% of the 100 people it employs full-time at the three hotels it owns. (more…)
La Pensione Hotel to Join R.A. Rauch & Associates’ Portfolio of boutique and full-service hotels
San Diego-based hotel management and consulting firm welcomes iconic boutique hotel to their collection
San Diego (March 5, 2013) – San Diego-based hotel management and consulting firm R.A. Rauch & Associates announces a new marketing agreement with La Pensione Hotel. Located in the epicenter of Downtown San Diego’s hip and historic Little Italy neighborhood, this boutique property features 68 European-inspired, newly redesigned guestrooms and is mere steps from the neighborhood’s modern Italian restaurants, eclectic art galleries, and boutique shops.
“Our guests constantly boast about our enviable location and affordable luxury,” said, Marc Hamel, general manager of La Pensione. “We offer an experience that’s hard to come by in downtown San Diego.”
RAR’s proven expertise in the management and operation of boutique hotels in top destinations, such as El Cordova Hotel in Coronado, Pantai Inn in La Jolla and Pacific View Inn in Pacific Beach, was a driving factor in signing this new property. RAR also currently owns and manages the Hilton Garden Inn San Diego/Del Mar, the Homewood Suites by Hilton San Diego/Del Mar, and Quality Inn & Suites Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs.
“La Pensione is a remarkable property and is an icon to Little Italy’s landscape,” said RAR President Robert Rauch. “Our team is excited to be working with the La Pensione staff to enhance the guest experience with solid marketing outreach, community partnerships and unique programming that takes advantage of the hotel’s prime location.”
By April 2013, the hotel will complete an extensive guestroom redesign, which combines the property’s Italian heritage with a contemporary urban aesthetic. Each exquisitely designed guestroom features a glamorous European hotel experience. A rich color palette of dark gray, white, silver and ochre yellow, paired with modern furnishings, accentuate the historic artwork depicting San Diego’s early Italian heritage displayed in each guestroom.
La Pensione also boasts a newly revamped business center, workout facility and conference room. On-site urban travelers can enjoy Caffe Italia, long-considered by locals as the quintessential Italian café, and Na Pizza, San Diego’s first green certified pizzeria.
For more information on R.A. Rauch & Associates, please visit https://hotelguru.com/. For more information on La Pensione Hotel, visit http://www.lapensionehotel.com/.
R.A. Rauch & Associates
R.A. Rauch & Associates is a San Diego-based hotel management and consulting firm that currently manages and operates the Homewood Suites by Hilton San Diego/Del Mar, Hilton Garden Inn San Diego/Del Mar, the historic El Cordova Hotel in Coronado, the oceanfront Pantai Inn in La Jolla, beachside Pacific View Inn in Pacific Beach, La Pensione in the heart of San Diego’s Little Italy, and the Quality Inn & Suites Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs. The company’s president, Robert Rauch, is nationally recognized as the HOTEL GURU, a hotelier with more than 35 years of hospitality-related management experience who serves clients in all facets of the industry. Find out more about Rauch and his team and see how they can drive your hotel to success at HotelGuru.com
Filner wants new tourism marketing deal
from UT San Diego (Feb 18, 2013):
…Hotel owner Robert Rauch said hoteliers may be amenable to a shorter term for the Tourism Marketing District, but he’s confident most would not agree to many of Filner’s other demands.
“We already give him 100 percent of the Transient Occupancy Tax,” he said. “We’re not going to give him more. That’s not going to happen. As for the living wage, he should work through that with the unions, that should have nothing to do with the TMD.
” Rauch added, “The mayor seems to have a complete disregard for our industry from my perspective. I think he’s damaging the city of San Diego in multiple ways.
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Top 10 Hospitality Success Trends for 2013
- 2013 is a recovery year – the tourism market has outperformed the economy over the past year. Employment levels continue to be weak and growth in consumer spending lags along with consumer confidence. Europe is on life support and China, while enjoying a strong economy in recent years is showing signs of decline. By and large, by all measurements, travel demand is up. This past year, the hospitality industry has seen growth in both occupancy and… Watch the video!… (more…)
Hotels Deal with New ADA Pool Access Rules
from San Diego Business Journal (Feb 4-10, 2013):
…Local Hotel consultant Robert Rauch, chow company also operates two Hilton-branded hotels in Carmel Valley, said his overall costs to make facilities compliant were likely typical for most local properties – approximately $3,000 to $4,000 per body of water – and he does not expect compliant properties to see significant increases to their insurance or other liability costs related to the lift equipment. “The approach overall (by the government) was somewhat ill-conceived. but I am pro-accessibility,” said Rauch, president of R.A.Rauch & Associates Inc. in San Diego. “At this point we are doing the right thing.”
Read more…
The London Group presents An Unconventional Recovery: Real Estate Forecast for 2013
The London Group provides real estate advisory services to a broad range of clientele utilizing a team of experts who are thought leaders in their specialty fields. These principals span all aspects of the real estate industry and their diverse backgrounds provide for a complete forecast of where the real estate market will be going in 2013. (more…)
Hospitality and Tourism Industry May Need a Bigger Welcome
from the San Diego Business Journal (Jan 7, 2012):
…San Diego-based hospitality consulting firm R.A. Rauch & Associates Inc. recently forecast that strong local hotel occupancy and room rate growth seen in the latter half of 2012 is likely to continue in 2013. Occupancy is forecast to climb from the current 71 percent to 71.7 percent, while the average daily rate is expected to go from $132 to $138.
Company President Robert Rauch noted that the local hotel construction pipeline remains historically sparse, with just 478 new rooms expected to come online in 2013. That means existing properties in the coming year should benefit from a rising influx of international leisure and business travelers, especially as Japan Airlines’ direct local flights to Asia go from four-times-weekly to daily starting March 1.
Rauch said local corporate-related hotel business is being stoked by continued growth in industries such as wireless communications and biotech. “Corporations are getting back to selling face-to-face,” he said…
Hotel industry veteran has business down to a science
from the San Diego Daily Transcript (Dec. 31, 2012):
“Despite a national economy that remains sluggish, the hotel industry in San Diego is picking up. That’s good news for hotel management company RA Rauch & Associates.
The firm currently operates four hotels in San Diego. It owns and operates a Homewood Suites by Hilton and a Hilton Garden Inn, both in Del Mar, and manages boutique hotels El Cordova in Coronado and Pantai Inn in La Jolla.
All of its hotels are up in occupancy and daily room rate, said Robert Rauch, president of RA Rauch & Associates. The Hilton branded hotels are running at 82 percent occupancy year to date, while the Pantai Inn is driving room rates that are among the highest in the county, according to Rauch…”