

Sofitel's promotions are going in a 'new direction,' including the removal of Bibles from guest rooms

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Hotel chains are removing Bibles from guest rooms, replacing them with "intimacy kits" and adding "One Night Stand" packages as well as "romance concierge" personnel to their offerings, according to a new report in Newsweek.

Tens of thousands of Americans are protesting the trend, through an action e-mail alert sponsored by American Family Association.

The Newsweek report by Roya Wolverson suggested a new marketing campaign could be based on the apparent values-less programs that are appearing.

"Marriott spokesman John Wolf says the Bible question [whether to include them in guest rooms] is premature for the new [boutique hotel] venture, which he describes as 'cutting-edge,' 'more urban' and 'less values-oriented.' Now, there's a marketing slogan no one's tried yet: 'Sleep with us. Leave the values at home!'" Wolverson wrote.

Wolverson reported the American Hotel and Lodging Association confirms since 2001 the number of luxury hotels with religious materials in their rooms has dropped by 18 percent, and the Nashville-based Gideons International, which has supplied Bibles for hotel and motel rooms for the last 99 years, isn't commenting on the trend.



The report said there are no Bibles in the trendy rooms of the Soho Grand Hotel in Manhattan, although guests are provided with iPod docking stations, flat-screen TVs and even the living company of a complimentary goldfish.

There, spokeswoman Lori DeBlois told Newsweek, adding Bibles to rooms would mean she "would have to take care of every guest's belief."

Newsweek also reported that what may be more surprising is upscale accommodations all across the nation, not just in New York, are "doing away with the Bible as a standard room amenity."

"Edgier chains like the W provide 'intimacy kits' with condoms in the minibar, while New York's Mercer Hotel supplies a free condom in each bathroom. Neither has Bibles. Since its recent renovation, the Sofitel L.A. offers a tantalizing lovers' dice game: roll one die for the action to be performed (for example, "kiss," "lick") and the other for the associated body part," Newsweek said.

"The new Indigo hotel in Scottsdale, Ariz., a 'branded boutique' launched by InterContinental, also has no Bibles," the report said.

Officials at that hotel, however, did offer a promotion on a "One Night Stand" package.

"Our 'One Night Stand' summer packages provide a cost effective way to enjoy our lower rates and remain in the heart of the active art, shopping, dining and nightlife venues of Old Town Scottsdale," said Laura Godfrey, sales manager for the hotel. "With this package, you'll feel good about the decision you made to stay in the area and stay the night."

That package includes a "late check-out time" of 1 p.m.

"Sofitel's brand, for example, is taking 'a new direction,' says Daniel Entenberg, the 'romance concierge' at the chain's flagship Los Angeles location," according to Newsweek.

Newsweek attributes the reason for the removal of the Bibles to increasing leisure travel and decreasing business travel.

But the wholesale removal of the Bibles was too much for the Mississippi-based American Family Association.

"Now is the time to let the motel chains know that you want them to keep the Gideon Bibles," said its e-mail alert. "For Accor, providing travelers with sexual paraphernalia is more important than the Bible. Accor hotels owns several chains including: Motel 6, Sofitel, Pullman, Novotel, Mercure, Suitehotel, Ibis, All Seasons, Etap, Formule 1. While these chains are mostly located in Europe, Accor is expanding to many U.S. markets."

AFA said that "without action now, it is simply a matter of time before other chains remove the Bibles."

AFA's petition effort generated more than 80,000 contacts with the hotel companies in just hours after its launch, according to a Web counter on the site.

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