the living room, Vanderbilt Hall.
Vanderbilt Hall
Owner: Grant Howlett and John Clarkson
Location: 41 Mary Street, Newport
Type of business: Hotel
Year founded: 1996
Employees: 60
Annual revenues: WND
Stepping off the cobblestone driveway, through the double white doors and into the foyer of Vanderbilt Hall is like travelling back in time.
Beyond Cash Donations: How New Forms of Giving Are Transforming Not-for-Profit Accounting
Evolving Funding Landscape for Not-for-Profits Not-for-profit organizations are being asked to do more with less,…
Learn More
With a capacious staircase descending like two open arms from a foyer balcony, a wide hallway leading to the glassed-in solarium, and a lavish fireplace in between there is one thing missing — a check-in desk.
“We are a country house and as such when you walk in we want you to feel like you are coming in to a country home,” said Ted Horan, general manager of Vanderbilt Hall. “When you arrive you are greeted by a butler and escorted to your room.”
According to Horan, the mansion was built in 1908 as a guesthouse by one of Newport’s most famed residents — Cornelius Vanderbilt. Upon completion of the project, Horan said Vanderbilt found the he didn’t need the house and donated it to the city of Newport. Used for a while as a meeting place, the building was then turned into a YMCA and by the early 1990s served as the headquarters for Doris Duke’s charity headquarters.
Bought by the CountyHouse Hotel Company in 1995, it took almost two years to restore the mansion. But today, the 55-room hotel is the only four-diamond rated facility in Newport.
“We deliberately wanted to restore and create an eclectic look typical of a grand house,” said Grant Howlett, co-owner. “All the rooms are very different. Some are heavily themed, others are more traditional.”
Marketing to both the leisure and the business traveler, Horan said the hotel has many of today’s amenities inside its historic shell, including a restored indoor pool, a Jacuzzi, a small workout area, and a billiard room.
For those traveling on business, Howlett said, the hotel’s rooms are wired for today’s technology and there are a number of different meeting spaces, that are also able to accommodate laptops, Power Point presentations, and fax machines.
“We aren’t a corporate convention hall,” he said. “We provide very high-end corporate clients with a private, intimate place to do business.”
Horan said the key to attracting the high-end market both in business and leisure travel is making sure all needs are met.
“Today’s marketplace is so competitive that you have to remember the little things,” he said. “You have to anticipate the needs of your guests.”
One of the ways the hotel does that, Horan said, is by asking a series of questions of guests prior to their check-in arrival.
“This is very much a process,” he said. “We ask guests about allergies so that we can know what kinds of pillows to put on the beds.”
This kind of service doesn’t come with a small price tag, rooms range from $95 to $795 a night and a two night minimum is required on most weekends. Still Horan said it’s the hotel’s character and service that draws people.
“Newport has really become popular year round,” he said. “The city has a lot of bed and breakfasts, but it doesn’t have a lot of places like this.”
The hotel also boasts two dining rooms, one with a set five-course menu and the other a la carte. Both are open to the public. In addition, Howlett said, the hotel sponsors a number of events including a weeklong celebration in March that brings guest chefs from around the world to the hotel
“We have so many wonderful ideas,” he said. “Thing like this are enjoyable for everyone.”
According to Howlett, including the surrounding community in the hotel’s activities has been a priority from day one. Located in a residential area, the hotel has made a point of respecting its neighbors, he said.
“When we first opened we had a thank-you night to thank our neighbors and local merchants for helping us to get here,” he said. “We also wanted them to feel like they were a part of what we were doing.”
Just three years after it opened, the hotel is already getting praise from national and international travel associations, including winning the “Wine Spectator” award for its extensive wine collection. Most recently, the hotel was named “Most Excellent Hotel” by Johansens, international hotel guide.
“This was a total surprise, we had no idea that we were even up for the award,” Howlett said. “It’s a nice way to close one year and start another.”
And though Howlett won’t disclose the hotel’s financial numbers he said there has been “significant growth” over the last three years.
As for the future, he said he hopes to continue on the same path.
“The key thing is to constantly keep looking to improve quality,” he said. “When you make small improvements in your original design you are creating higher standards and that’s what we intend to do.”
