Hotel Guests’ Fitness Experience to Match That of Top Fitness Clubs

In a dedicated effort to enhance the wellness and vitality experience for hotel guests, Hilton New Orleans Riverside is upgrading the Health Club by Hilton to include Fitness by Precor facilities. Hilton Hotels Corporation and global fitness equipment leader Precor launched dynamic Fitness by Precor facilities at full-service Hilton hotels in 2006. With the exclusive agreement, brand standards have been established for a premium-quality fitness experience.

 “We are very excited to enhance the well-being and the overall travel experience of our guests by enabling them to maintain their fitness regimen while on the road,” said Fred Sawyers, General Manager of Hilton New Orleans Riverside. “The fitness facilities will enable guests to utilize superior equipment and underscores our commitment to enhancing our guests’ personal performance.”

A recent survey of more than 500 business travelers reflects that fitness centers are among the top-five hotel features they deem most important.* Research within the Hilton Family of Hotels shows that presence of a well-maintained hotel fitness center featuring high-end equipment can increase guest satisfaction by as much as 30 percent.

The specially designed facilities will utilize Precor-developed strength, cardio and entertainment equipment. A complement of core training, balance equipment and stretch accessories rounds out the performance-enhancement offerings.

“Travelers have expectations of what constitutes a great fitness experience, and they bring those expectations wherever they go. In collaboration with the Hilton Family of Hotels, we’ve created an environment that’s perfectly aligned with those expectations,” said Paul Byrne, president of Precor. “From the quality of the equipment to the range of exercise choices, we’re offering a compelling, energetic environment so guests can have a superior travel experience and work towards their fitness objectives while they’re on the road.”

Precor also is the preferred supplier for the Hilton Family of Hotels, including Hampton®, Hilton Garden Inn®, Homewood Suites by Hilton®, Hilton Grand Vacations™, newly built Waldorf=Astoria Hotels and future hotels joining The Waldorf=Astoria Collection™.

“The Hilton Family of Hotels has recognized a central customer need in terms of fitness, and taken a major step to elevate the hotel fitness experience to a level that’s comparable to that of a leading fitness club,” said Byrne. “The combination of premium-quality fitness and entertainment equipment and Hilton’s dedication to a compelling look, feel and environment establishes a new standard for hospitality fitness.”

The Health Club by Hilton also has individual and corporate memberships available to the public. The Health and Fitness membership includes use of all fitness facilities, locker rooms, basketball court and classes. The Racquet membership includes all of the above plus indoor tennis, racquetball & squash courts. In addition to memberships, the Health Club by Hilton has a virtual golf studio, personal trainers, tennis pros and massage therapist available at an additional cost. For more information about joining, call (504) 556.3742 or visit www.TheHealthClub.us.

Unique Entertainment Features
The co-branded fitness centers also will offer Precor Cardio Theater Exercise Entertainment™, providing entertainment technology either from wall-mounted plasma television or Personal Viewing Screens (LCD) on each cardiovascular machine.  Lightweight headphones will feature superior sound, further contributing to an enhanced workout experience for guests.  With these systems, guests can choose from a variety of music genres and network entertainment.

Superior Design
Standard across the Hilton Family full-service hotels, fitness equipment options will be catered to the specifications of each hotel.  Larger hotels will complete their new fitness facilities in phases, with Precor equipment, specially designed flooring, signage and wall paint specifications representing the first phase for all hotels.  They may undergo a second phase that includes an enlargement of the fitness center.

Commitment to Quality
Precor’s proprietary Insite technology, which offers utilization monitoring to assist in the quality control of co-branded facilities and track the equipment usage at its fitness facility locations, will enable the hotels to effectively deliver the most popular and well-maintained machines. 
Fitness facilities feature innovative designs that flow within the existing hotel setting and color schemes.  Depending on the size of the hotel facility, fitness centers will include a selection of the following:

Cardio Machines
Fitness by Precor facilities will feature a range of premium cardio equipment choices found in top health clubs and fitness facilities, which may include Precor C956i low-impact treadmills, EFX® 546i lower-body Elliptical Fitness Crosstrainers, and C846i cycles.

Precor Strength Equipment
Guests can focus on a variety of fitness objectives through a range of Precor user-defined, functional and traditional strength equipment models, including the FTS Functional Training System as well as machines designed to address specific upper- and lower-body muscle groups.  Additionally, guests who use free weights have the option of using Precor dumbbells, barbells and Olympic plates.

Core & Balance Equipment (Resistance Exercises)
In addition to Precor equipment, fitness centers will offer a range of core and balance training accessories, which may include Bosu balance trainers, medicine and stability balls, resistance bands and exercise tubing and weighted body bars.  Club-quality stretch mats and benches round out the equipment options.

About Precor
Founded in 1980, Seattle-based Precor is a subsidiary of Amer Sports Corp. (www.amersports.com), the world's largest sports equipment company, with internationally recognized brands Wilson, Atomic, Suunto, Precor, Salomon and Mavic.

About Hilton New Orleans Riverside
In the "center of it all," the newly renovated Hilton New Orleans Riverside hotel is set immediately on the banks of the Mississippi River with easy access to everything New Orleans has to offer. This full service luxury complex is actually a "city within itself," and recently completed a $40 million renovation, complementing the main hotel guest room updates that feature the Hilton Serenity Collection TM. Hilton Hotels & Resorts is the full-service, flagship brand for Hilton Hotels Corporation, recognized internationally as a preeminent hospitality company. The company develops, owns, manages or franchises more than 2,100 hotels, resorts and vacation ownership properties. Its portfolio includes many of the world’s best known and most highly regarded hotel brands, including Hilton, Conrad, Doubletree, Embassy Suites Hotels, Hampton Inn, Hampton Inn & Suites, Hilton Garden Inn, Hilton Grand Vacations Company and Homewood Suites by Hilton. For more information about our company, please visit our corporate website at www.hiltonworldwide.com.

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*Study commissioned by Accenture in 2005.

Contact:    Monique Roche
Zehnder Communications
504-558-7778
mroche@z-comm.com