Jan. 1, 1970

Room Tight at South Africa's World Cup Hotels, Starwood Expanding & a Bizarre Hotel in France

If you’re planning on going to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, you might want to book your hotel rooms as soon as possible. Prices have already gone up by a factor of six, and with 450,000 visitors expected in a country with about 200,000 rooms, space will be tight, the Associated Press reported today.

Finding lodging in large cities like Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban shouldn’t be a problem, but smaller host cities like Polokwane or Nelsprui will likely have difficulties housing World Cup tourists.

It may be necessary to stay at hotels in South Africa’s larger cities and make day-trips to games in smaller cities, a FIFA official was quoted as saying.

Starwood Hotels Expanding Westin Brand This Year and Next

Although most hotels and hotel chains are suffering on account of the recession – some are selling off properties to cut losses – Starwood Hotels is moving forward with an aggressive strategy and planning to open six Westin hotels by the end of the year.

The company will open a Westin hotel near the Dulles Washington Airport and another in Orlando, Fla. this week. It is focused on expansion in China and India, but next year is also opening 12 hotels in countries including Mexico, Canada, Greece and Japan, a spokeswoman told the Wall Street Journal today.

Bizarre Hotel in Nantes, France Offers Guests Opportunity to Live like a Hamster

Reuters recently reported a hotel in Nantes, France is offering guests a chance to live like a hamster for $148 per night. The Hamster Villa’s appeal may be limited to people with specific tastes, but guests sleep on hay, eat hamster food and can run on a giant hamster wheel for exercise. No word yet as to what the hotel’s Michelin rating is.

At Hotels-In.com

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