Helping Hands: Rosewood, IHG Army Hotels and More

INTERNATIONAL REPORT—At this time of crisis, those associated with the hotel industry make every effort to take care of their own, as well as others in the areas that they serve. Here are some organizations that are helping any way they can during the coronavirus pandemic:

Rosewood Hotel Group Launches Rosewood Raise
Rosewood Hotel Group has launched Rosewood Raise, a comprehensive relief initiative developed in support of the group’s associates who have been impacted by COVID-19, as well as the communities in which the group operates. Rosewood Raise support includes donated hotel rooms and meal preparation and supplies for essential workers.

Managed by the Emergency Assistance Foundation Inc., a 501c(3) charity created to design and operate multiple employer-sponsored disaster relief and employee hardship funds, the Rosewood Raise Relief Fund aims to assist staff in corporate offices and managed hotels across its three brands—Rosewood Hotels & Resorts, New World Hotels & Resorts and KHOS.

The fund will support associates whose jobs were amongst the first and most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, prioritizing those facing financial difficulties due to health-related needs, as well as local communities that have been especially affected by the pandemic. Upon the containment of the current crisis, the relief fund will continue to support the group’s associates against future adversities and hardships.

On the property level, several of the group’s hotels and resorts are supporting the local communities in which they operate. Among the first properties in the portfolio to be affected by COVID-19, New World Hotels & Resorts hotels in Wuhan and Guiyang in China saluted their cities’ medical workers by providing complimentary accommodations. Across the Rosewood Hotels & Resorts brand, many properties throughout Asia-Pacific, Europe and North America are supplying necessities and meals to medical associates, first responders and area hospitals, as well as to local organizations and charities aimed at assisting families and individuals in need.

Both Rosewood Bangkok and Rosewood Miramar Beach in Montecito, CA, have created Rosewood on the Move food delivery services to offer complimentary comfort meals to frontline workers in the hotels’ respective regions. Additional properties preparing meals for key workers at their local hospitals include Rosewood London (London), Rosewood Hong Kong and Rosewood Abu Dhabi.

IHG Army Hotels Support Communities and Military Families
IHG Army Hotels, a portfolio of hotels on 40 military installations in the U.S. and Puerto Rico, continues to serve communities and military families during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to caring for active and retired members of the military and their families, properties are providing accommodations for service members who are supporting relief efforts or those who have been temporarily displaced during this emergency, including military personnel whose barracks or on-post housing have been repurposed.

All IHG Army Hotels will remain open and operational during the COVID-19 response. In addition to serving guests, local hotels are focused on working with the U.S. Army and base leadership to best support the installation mission and their communities in the most impactful way. For example:

  • Hunter Army Airfield and Fort Stewart (Georgia): Hotels on these bases are just a few of the properties that are making face masks for their colleagues, local first responders and hospital personnel on post.
  • Joint Base San Antonio (Texas) and Fort Wainwright (Alaska): To help provide a sense of normalcy for families, hotels on base maintained and adapted a years-long holiday tradition with a “socially distant” visit from the Easter Bunny, who dropped off individually wrapped goodie baskets for children in house.
  • Across the Country: Through fundraising activities across multiple bases in recent months— including bake sales, denim days and other grassroots activities—teams at IHG Army Hotels properties across the country were able to make a collective donation to the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation, an organization that builds mortgage-free smart homes for injured veterans and first responders.

Angel Hospitality Donates Masks
Plano, TX-based Angel Hospitality Group has purchased and donated 25,000 medical grade face masks and distributed them in the cities in which it operates, Irving and Denton, TX. The effort was solely financed by Angel Hospitality. The masks were donated to police departments, fire departments, hospitals and various other first responders.

Additionally, one of the company’s properties has housed 10 homeless families that the City of Denton wanted to place in hotels due to shortage of space in shelters. In the last two weeks, Angel Hospitality has donated up to 180 room nights for the shelterless people in the city.

Coast Hotels Offers Discounted Rooms
Coast Hotels has launched its Coast Cares program in an effort to provide accredited healthcare workers and first responders with a place to stay.

“When we saw media stories about nurses and healthcare workers sleeping in their cars, we wanted to be part of the solution,” said Kelli Steer, Coast’s VP of hotel operations. “While the hotel industry is also hurting during this crisis, we have empty rooms and we’re in a position to help.”

Coast Hotels has locations across Western Canada that are in close proximity to hospitals and care centers. If it is more convenient for a healthcare or frontline worker to stay in a hotel than to travel home, the company has offered a special $59 rate, which includes parking at most locations. Day rates and flexible check-in/checkout times are also available.

Forbes Travel Guide Creates eLearning Webinar Series
Forbes Travel Guide has created the Hospitality Strong, a webinar series designed to engage, educate and elevate furloughed, laid-off and working hospitality staff of all levels during the coronavirus crisis. The webinars take place from April 23 to June 25.

The complimentary webinars will be delivered by Forbes Travel Guide’s Learning & Development team and feature a mix of hospitality principles illustrated with stories and visuals. Topics range from “A Timeless Service Philosophy for Uncertain Times” to “Leading Through Luxury.”

“It has been devastating to see our beloved hospitality industry come to such a sudden pause during this unprecedented time,” said Filip Boyen, CEO, Forbes Travel Guide. “This is our contribution to the collective industry effort that will be needed to rebuild and strengthen hospitality following the crisis.”