Staybridge Suites almost completely occupied one month after opening.
By: Matthew Kirdahy
The new Staybridge Suites in town is almost completely occupied and it’s only a month old.
Staybridge Suites is a three-story, 54,819-square-foot hotel on Cranbury-South River Road. Holiday Inn, a division of Intercontinental Hotels Group, owns the 87-room extended stay hotel.
Roseann Bodner, director of sales for Staybridge Suites, said the hotel, which opened Feb. 10, has between 70-80 percent occupancy. The Planning Board approved the hotel July 11, 2002.
"We had pre-opening sales," Ms. Bodner said. "We had people onboard two to three months before the hotel opened."
Guests have a choice of staying in a studio suite, a one-bedroom one-bathroom suite or a two-bedroom two-bathroom suite. The hotel is primarily an extended stay facility for people in town on business or in the middle of a transfer.
Each room has a fully equipped kitchen. The hotel provides utensils, bowls, plates and glasses. Guests can work at the desk provided in the rooms where they can access the Internet with the hotel network using their laptop. Guests also can access the Internet and transmit faxes at the business center located on the first floor.
Next to the business center are the library and the great room or high-ceiling lounge, which is visible from the main entrance. A floor to ceiling stone gas fireplace separates the great room from the main foyer.
The hotel offers a buffet style continental breakfast to its guests next to the great room. They also have access to 7-24, a convenience store in the lobby open 24 hours a day all week.
There is also a fitness center on the first floor equipped with treadmills, weight-training machines and a TV. In the rear of the hotel, there is a basketball court, a swimming pool and a barbecue pavilion.
Ms. Bodner said all of the amenities are complimentary with the hotel’s lodging rates, which vary.
Ms. Bodner said that if guests are looking for a local restaurant to sit down for a meal or a place to go for a walk, hotel staff directs them to Cranbury’s village.
"It’s a safe town and it has a lot of nice little places," Ms. Bodner said.
Since the hotel is still new to the area, the Staybridge staff has been introducing itself into the community by visiting local businesses.
"It’s an education for us to get out there and meet with clients to let them know we’re here," Ms. Bodner said. "It gives us a good impression to the people in the Cranbury area."
The new hotel could provide Cranbury with about $50,000 in hotel tax revenue a year.
Township Administrator Fred Carr said that figure will vary because the tax is based on room occupancy, hotel room rates and other variable.
Money the township collects from the hotel tax is earmarked for helping pay the township’s debt.
The state law allows municipalities to impose a 1 percent tax on the occupants of hotel rooms. That’s in addition to the 7 percent tax the state charges. This year, the state will drop its hotel tax rate to 5 percent. Municipalities will be able increase their local hotel tax to 3 percent on July 1.
Guests can book reservations at the Web site www.staybridge.com for up to 99 nights and reserve a longer stay by appearing in person at the hotel or by calling (800) 238-8000. Ms. Bodner said 60 percent of the occupants are at Staybridge Suites on a long-term basis.