Orlando, FL — Destination design firm WATG has unveiled the guestroom concepts for the Statler Hotel renovation, scheduled to be complete in February 2009.

“The design of the guestrooms features photographic elements and colors from the university brought together with eco-friendly materials and the latest technology to create a contemporary, comforting environment for the hotel guest,” said Susan Bruce, senior associate at WATG.

Some of the features in each guestroom will include:

Artwork consisting of campus-life photography such as architectural elements, students at work and play or the changing seasons.

The latest technology and other modern amenities
eco-friendly wall coverings and fabrics

The room’s focal point being a platform bed with a floor-to-ceiling upholstered headboard framed by millwork towers

A sophisticated color palette of warm hues in light and dark tones that are enhanced with splashes of “Cornell red” dark woods, brushed nickel and sleek marble that add richness and contrast

The Statler Hotel is both a working hotel property and a teaching hotel where students at Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration apply their classroom learning to practical experience. Each year some 200 students work alongside seasoned professionals across all hotel and restaurant operations. A select group of students rise into management positions through participation in the school's Statler Leadership Development Program. Additionally, many faculty members work closely with hotel leadership to integrate hotel operations into the curriculum. The hotel serves not only the school’s undergraduate and graduate students, but also industry professionals from around the world who visit campus to take advanced hospitality service and management courses through the school's Office of Executive Education.

The property features 153 rooms, a conference center, three restaurants, and abundant meeting and banquet facilities. As the gateway to the university and the surrounding Finger Lakes region, the Statler plays host to a sophisticated clientele that regularly includes global leaders in government, business, and academia. Among the property's guests have been heads of state, Supreme Court Justices, U.S. senators, world-renowned entertainers and CEOs of leading hotel organizations such as Fairmont, Hilton, Marriott and Four Seasons.

For more information about participating in the Statler Hotel renovation project, please contact Meg Keilbach '88, interim director of Alumni Affairs and Development at mhb7@cornell.edu or Joe Strodel, director of Corporate Relations at j343@cornell.edu.

WATG specializes in hospitality, leisure and entertainment design from its offices in Orlando, Irvine, Honolulu, Seattle, Singapore and London. The firm is best known for such internationally-acclaimed projects as Atlantis Paradise Island, Bahamas; Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa; Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea; Hotel Bora Bora, French Polynesia; Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa at Walt Disney World Resort; and The Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel. WATG is the number one hospitality design firm in the world, according to surveys by Hotel Design and Hotel & Motel Management magazines. Hospitality Design magazine’s recent survey of architecture and interior design firms ranked WATG’s corporate culture among the top in the country: best career advancement, best firm philosophy, best client list, best list of projects, and most innovative. Since its founding in 1945, WATG has designed destinations in 157 countries from its offices in worldwide.

For more information, please use the email provided.

Email: rclewley@watg.com