Site Scene

Maryland

• The Bethesda North Marriott Hotel & Conference Center recently doubled the size of its guest rooms and expanded its conference space. The hotel added a guest room tower with 229 rooms in addition to the existing 220. The tally includes three expansive hospitality suites and a presidential suite, bringing the total number of suites to 11. In addition to the tower, the hotel added dedicated conference dining space. There are 40,000 square feet of flexible function space and a total of 449 guest rooms and suites. The hotel offers a 23,500-square-foot grand ballroom surrounded by prefunction space, as well as 13 meeting rooms and a 130-seat amphitheater. For more information, call 301.822.9200 or visit www.bethesdanorthmarriott.com.

• The Westin Jersey City Newport is slated to open in early February. The hotel will offer 429 guest rooms, upscale dining and 20,500 square feet of meeting space, including 30 meeting rooms. The Newport Grand Ballroom will offer more than 10,000 square feet of space and 20-foot ceilings and accommodate 1,450 guests for a reception or 790 for a seated dinner. The hotel will also feature a fitness center and Westin in-room spa program. High-speed Internet access will be available throughout the hotel. For more information, call 201.626.2900 or visit www.starwood.com.

• The Crowne Plaza Newark Airport opened in November after undergoing a $10 million renovation and conversion from Four Points by Sheraton. Amenities at the 11-story, 260-room hotel include indoor and outdoor swimming pools, a fitness center, a business center and a comprehensive meetings program. The hotel has 6,000 square feet of flexible meeting space for business functions or special events. For more information, call 908.527.1600 or visit www.ichotelsgroup.com.

• Hospitality veterans Sean MacPherson and Eric Goode have given the old Jane Hotel new life as The Jane, a 200-room micro hotel for travelers on a budget. In 1912, the hotel sheltered survivors of the Titanic. It became a sailors’ haven in the 1920s, and in recent years, the 1907 waterfront building became a residential hotel. The Jane unveiled a select block of preview rooms in late August and opened in stages throughout the fall. For 150 rooms measuring about 50 square feet, the rates start at $99 with communal bathrooms down the hall. For slightly higher rates, 50 rooms measuring 250 square feet feature private bathrooms. All rooms feature free high-speed Internet access and 23-inch, flat-screen LCD televisions. The lobby, which was once a ballroom and briefly a theater, has also been restored. The basement’s original hand-tiled swimming pool and bathing area was restored and equipped with a sauna and bathrooms. For more information, call 212.924.6700 or visit www.thejanenyc.com.
  
  
• The 136-room Holiday Inn Long Island City–Manhattan View opened in January. Situated in Long Island City, Queens, the new-build, 75,000-square-foot hotel is within walking distance of the New York City subway system and offers a variety of amenities, including an indoor swimming pool, fitness center and wireless Internet access throughout. Many rooms have balconies with views of the Manhattan skyline. Guests can also enjoy the hotel’s lounge, Swirl, with an outdoor patio, as well as nearly 1,000 square feet of function space. For more information, call 718.707.3700 or visit www.ichotelsgroup.com.

• Four Points by Sheraton Philadelphia City Center recently opened one block from the Pennsylvania Convention Center. The hotel offers 92 guest rooms as well as 2,688 square feet of meeting space, including a penthouse ballroom on the 10th floor with views of the Benjamin Franklin Bridge, City Hall and the city skyline. For more intimate meetings, the hotel offers a boardroom on the main floor, adjacent to the library. Additional facilities include a restaurant, fitness facility and free high-speed Internet in all public areas and guest rooms. Each guest room has a 32-inch, flat-panel television. For more information, call 215.448.2000 or visit www.starwoodhotels.com.