Hilton Garden Inn Indianapolis Downtown

Go Colts!

Thursday, December 3, 2009 by Teresa Tracy

Wow! Another great season. Are you a lucky season ticket holder? We are one of the hotels near Lucas Oil Stadium. Celebrate a win and book one of our Indianapolis hotel packages. The Hilton Garden Inn offers one of the best hotel accommodations in Indianapolis. Go Blue!

We are also a newly renovated hotel in Indianapolis. We have installed the new Hilton GSS bed for a restful night's sleep...there's no better way to end the day. (after we win...of course!)

We also know that in Indianapolis the "home team" isn't just about sports. Indianapolis looks out for the environment as well. If you are looking for a hotel that thinks green...you are in luck! We are one of the few Green hotels in Indianapolis. We are not just talking about recycling we have amazing solar panels in our roof top.

Whether its a game, a special occasion, or just a night away. Think of the Hilton Garden Inn Indianapolis Downtown.

The PourHouse, Inc. Clothes Drive

Wednesday, November 25, 2009 by Lindsay Gill

The PourHouse, Inc. is a non-profit organization in Indianapolis dedicated to helping the homeless community. To quote their website: "Our approach is simple and a bit unconventional. We live in true community with those who are homeless. They are a part of our family holidays…we celebrate birthdays, new jobs, sobriety and warm farewells.

We help them with the difficult things of life, but also the simple ones like doing laundry, filling out applications and choosing the perfect shoes for an interview.

We celebrate their joys and triumphs, but most of all, we celebrate who they are as people. Healing and change happen when dignity, a voice, hope, and a name are restored."

The Hilton Garden Inn Indianapolis downtown hotel will begin collecting clothing for The PourHouse on Monday, November 30, 2009. I will keep a donation box in my office at the hotel. Clothing and items given to the Front Desk will be transferred to this donation box. All items donated will be picked up by or walked over to The PourHouse on Monument Circle.

What they need:

Men's clothing
Men's Underwear & Socks
Men's Shoes
Blankets
Jackets & Winter Coats
Coffee, Creamers, Sugar, Cups & Lids

How will YOU help get someone back on their feet this year? Please help The PourHouse in their efforts to help others.

Indianapolis Downtown Hotel installs New Carpet and recycles the old

Friday, November 13, 2009 by Michael Campbell

NEW CARPET!!!

One of the key parts of our renovation and refresh is new carpeting. We have about 40% of our guestrooms completed with thankfully little to no disruption to our guests. Because of the high rise nature of the building we have a small number of rooms on any given floor so we've been able to isolate the work from areas our guests are in. The nightmare of any guest, and therefore any General Manager, is construction work being done right next door to someone trying to sleep, relax or work. We've worked hard to make sure that doesn't happen. The carpet, gives the room a warmer feel as you can see below.

The $1.2 million investment in carpeting, bedding, and new furnishing will allow us to be the most newly renovated hotel in Indianapolis' downtown. As part of the Hilton family of hotels it is important to keep our product fresh and vibrant and comfortable for our frequent business travelers as well as for those Indianapolis Colts fans that are arriving to support the team this weekend versus the rival New England Patriots, you might want to stay at this newly renovated hotel near Lucas Oil Stadium.

Our guestrooms will be very near 100% completion by Thanksgiving. If you are Downtown for the Tree Lighting ceremony on Monument Circle, or coming into town for the MLB Winter Meetings at the Indianapolis Convention Center take a look at the newest rooms in an Indianapolis Downtown Hotel.

As I've mentioned before, part of our ongoing strategy during this renovation has been to look for ways to green the operation. In accordance with our commitment to be a green hotel, the old carpet is being recycled. Indianapolis is fortunate that we have a regional carpet recycling center located on the Northwest side of town. We are working with Kruse Carpet Recycling to ensure that the enormous amount of carpeting doesn't end up in a landfill. To see more about the process take a look at this video of the Kruse Carpet recycling process.

The cost of recycling this carpet approximates the amount we would have spent on a roll off dumpster and has kept this material from accumulating near the building and detracting from our exterior appearance. It keeps this from entering the waste stream so it's a win win for us.

Circle of Lights®

Monday, October 26, 2009 by Lindsay Gill

Since 2003, our Indianapolis downtown hotel celebrates the holiday season by throwing a great party the night after Thanksgiving! This party is by invitation only...BUT, if you do not receive an invitation, there's still a way to join us! Wanna know how?

Tell me if this sounds good. A beautiful guest room with 14' ceilings, cozy beds and some great downtown (and even Monument Circle) views on the chilly night after Thanksgiving. A great buffet with a variety of appetizers, entrees and desserts for your snacking pleasure. Hot chocolate, coffee and two free "adult beverages" at a private bar!

But wait...there's more! Live music, kids' entertainment like balloon artists, cookie decorating and even a special appearance by two beloved guests! Thanks to WFYI, Clifford, the Big Red Dog, will be here to take pictures with the kids and Santa Claus will be here for photo ops, too! If you're like me and don't like to fight the crowd outside to see the tree light up, you're in luck. Your Indianapolis hotel accommodations happen to be located just 1/2 block from the Monument! You can step outside the front door right onto Market Street, see the tree light up, bathe in the lights, then come right back inside for dessert and hot chocolate!

But wait...there's even more! You'll also have breakfast for two the next morning in the hotel's Great American Grill! A Full American breakfast buffet will be served from 7am until 12noon. On demand waffles, pancakes, French toast and fresh, cooked to order omelets are at your watering lips! I guess I'll tell you how you to get this special deal. All you have to do is visit our website, choose November 27 for your date of stay, then type in Group Code LIGHT9. You will receive a discount hotel rate for all the holiday goodness mentioned above. If you want to talk to a real person, though, you can always call up our Guest Service Reps at 317.955.9700 and ask for the Tree Lighting rate!

Well, what are you waiting for?

Duke Energy Yuletide Celebration

Friday, October 16, 2009 by Lindsay Gill

The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra is proud to present the Duke Energy Yuletide Celebration! A time-honored tradition complete with tap dancing Santas and flying reindeer, these shows are not to be missed. December 4 is the opening weekend at Hilbert Circle Theatre downtown Indianapolis on Monument Circle, a two minute walk from our historic hotel.

Keeping with our tradition, we are proud to once again partner with the ISO and WFYI to offer two incredible Indianapolis hotel packages! The first hotel package, Yuletide, Shop & Stay, is valued at almost $400 and includes:

Hotel accommodations at the Hilton Garden Inn Indianapolis Downtown,
Two main floor tickets to the Yuletide Celebration,
One year membership to WFYI, breakfast for two,
A $25 Simon Malls Visa Gift Card and
A gift bag with shopping coupons and goodies from WFYI!

You also get a voucher for two Lilly Classical Series tickets for a future show and all for only $219!

The second hotel package, Yuletide, Stay & SAVE, is valued at almost $350 and includes:

Accommodations at our three star hotel downtown Indianapolis,
Two 2nd mezzanine tickets to the Yuletide Celebration,
One year membership to WFYI,
Breakfast for two and
A special holiday surprise gift!

This great hotel deal also comes with the Lilly Classical Series voucher for two tickets to a future show. All this for only $189!

Both packages are available online or by calling 317.955.9700. For show dates and times, visit the ISO website. Reserve by Monday, November 23 and receive an email invitation to our annual Tree Lighting Ceremony Party held on Friday, November 27 in conjunction with the Circle of Lights®.There will be a special appearance by Santa and PBS KIDS character Clifford, the Big Red Dog! If you'd like to stay with us that night and have access to this invitation-only party, you can make your room reservation here!

Hilton Garden Indianapolis Downtown Selects Waste Management

Friday, October 9, 2009 by Michael Campbell

Starting an active recycling program in April 2007 was one of the first conscious efforts in greening our hotel. In October 2009 we've taken another important step.

We've selected Waste Management for our waste removal and recycling services for the upcoming year. Previously we had separate vendors for our trash service and our recycling service, and we have restrictions on what we can recycle and in what bins. With our switch to Waste Management this week we will be able to utilize a single stream recycling which will allow us to increase our volume of recycling and decrease our landfill waste hauling. Already in the first week, my recycling bin is overflowing and we were able to reduce our trash bin size by a full yard.

We have always struggled with the logistics of expanding recycling to our guestrooms; however with one recycling bin that takes everything now it's feasible. We anticipate being able to institute in room recycling by the end of the year or January 2010 at the latest.

This will coincide nicely with our guestroom renovation that begins at the end of this month. We are replacing all guestroom carpet, soft seating, and bedding. This should go fairly seamlessly and because of the high rise profile of the building we should be able to isolate any work being done on a completely unoccupied floor.

The Fight for Nic Nihiser

Thursday, October 1, 2009 by Lindsay Gill

We have a great cause we need your help with. Nic Nihiser, a marketing executive at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, was hit on his bicycle on Saturday, September 19 while riding home. Fox 59 Video As one of the hotels near Indianapolis Speedway, we are supporting Nic on his road to recovery.

Friends and family are holding a spaghetti dinner for him on October 10 from 4-7:30 at Decatur Intermediate School located at 5650 Mann Road Indianapolis. Donations for spaghetti, paper goods, salad, dressing, Parmesan cheese and help setting up are appreciated. Donating directly is also appreciated through PayPal by using the email address thefightfornicnihiser@yahoo.com.

Local businesses, friends, family and others are providing and seeking donations to auction off at the dinner. All proceeds will benefit Nic and his family in his recovery. You can follow his progress and learn more about how to help on the Facebook page The Fight for Nic Nihiser. Our Indianapolis hotel will be donating one overnight stay with breakfast for two to be auctioned off at the dinner.

Got the Fever?

Thursday, October 1, 2009 by Teresa Tracy

The staff at the Hilton Garden Inn Indianapolis Downtown has the caught the FEVER! No, not a temperature, but for our Lady Fever. We want to send out out congratulations for making it to our first WNBA Finals! The ladies will be taking on the Mercury in game 3 at Conseco Fieldhouse on October 4, 2009.

Maybe you can "catch the fever" and make it an overnight. Looking for a hotel deal in Indianapolis? Look no further. We offer great Indianapolis hotel packages. You can't beat out location... one of the closest hotels to Conseco Fieldhouse. Go to work on Tuesday and let your co-workers be green with envy, that you were able to see the Fever win, and stay at a historic hotel of Indianapolis. Start by checking into a room with a view of the Monument Circle and before the game have dinner in our American Grill, but don't stop there. Have a victory drink in our lounge before calling it a night. We'll see you in the morning for an amazing hot breakfast buffet. Our staff is second to none and is proud to be one of the star hotels of Downtown Indianapolis. What are you waiting for?

Make your hotel accommodations now and start the celebration!

Downtown Indianapolis Hotel installing Green Roof

Monday, September 28, 2009 by Michael Campbell

This week work began on the installation of our new roof! We are replacing our traditional EPDM or black rubber roofing on both our 4th floor and 16th floor roof landings with Firestone White TPO roofing material. This material carries an energy star rating for commercial building. As we strive to be more green hotel Indianapolis, the opportunity to improve our carbon footprint while taking care of a planned capital improvement appealed to us. The change from a black roof to a white roof does not affect the historic aspect of this building. This is important, so that we also stay consistent with our commitment as a historic hotel Indianapolis.

This new "White TPO roof" has several green components: 1. Because it is white, it reduces the heat island effect produced in urban areas with large areas of dark rooftops and asphalt and concrete roads, 2. The increase in heat reflection reduces the amount of energy needed to keep the temperature cool inside the building thereby reducing our utilities, and 3. The roof material is heat adhered to the building rather than with more traditional roofing adhesives that are more caustic.

The choice of using this material was a no-brainer. We were able to replace our roof with a white roof for the same cost as a traditional black EPDM roof and with the same warranty of 15years. The material cost of the White TPO roof is a little more but the labor investment is less and it is not as dependent on weather for installation as a traditional rubber roof, so you can do it later in the year. So for the same cost, we were able to further our green initiative, reduce our utility usage, and accumulate some energy star building credits.

This roof replacement should take about 3 weeks.

FIFA World Cup Soccer

Friday, September 11, 2009 by Lindsay Gill

I received this email today from the Indiana Sports Corp. Help us bring the FIFA World Cup to the U.S. and to Indy! This would be HUGE for us and benefit not only downtown Indy hotels, but many Indianapolis area hotels! Talk about a boost for our economy, restaurants, retail, airport, transporation, etc. As a former server and bartender, I would salivate over an event like this just for the potential tips! Ha! But seriously, what a great event and a great opportunity for the U.S. and Indianapolis to show the world we care about this sport and welcome it to our country and our city.

Do You Want to See FIFA World Cup Soccer in Indianapolis?

Indianapolis was recently selected as one of 27 U.S. cities still being considered as a host city for the 2018 or 2022 FIFA World Cup. The host city selection process will continue over the next few months. It's time for Indiana and Indianapolis to prove how passionate we are about hosting this great event. We're challenging you to help us make Indiana the most-represented state for the USA Bid Committee's online petition. Our bid will be judged on the number of residents who sign this petition to support our bid.

Forward this to soccer fans, sports fans, fans of world-class events in Indiana, your family, friends, co-workers, and all e-mails lists you can. Print this and hang it up in your office, your gym, your school, or anywhere else you can think of. Ask them to support Indianapolis and the United States' bid to host the FIFA World Cup by going to http://www.gousabid.com/page/s/sticker and signing the online petition that you want the FIFA World Cup to come to Indianapolis.

More than 40,000 fans have already shown their love of soccer and patriotic spirit by signing up.

Your support counts! Help us bring the FIFA World Cup to the U.S. and Indianapolis.

Best Available Rate Guaranteed!

Wednesday, September 9, 2009 by Lindsay Gill

Did you know Hilton Garden Inns are Best Available Rate guaranteed hotels? What does this mean? Well, it means that when you, as our potential or returning guest, are searching for Indianapolis hotel accommodations or and Indianapolis hotel deal, you will find our rates are the same on all third party booking sites, like Expedia and Orbitz, as they are on our HGI site.

How does this benefit you? First, you know the Hilton Garden Inn Indianapolis Downtown doesn't jack up our prices to sell at a higher rate on any website. Second, you know that king room you reserve on our website will be a king room when you arrive. Some third party booking sites only guarantee you a room, not a specific room type - like airlines guarantee you a fare, but not a specific seat. If this is the case on our site, you can always call the hotel to see what "Room Type Selected At Check-In" really means and if your preferred room type is, in fact, available. Finally, we can only offer our great packages on our HGI.com site. You'll find great Indianapolis hotel packages and our best available rates online...guaranteed.

Finally, whether you are searching for Indianapolis wedding hotels or a meeting hotel, hotels near Conseco Fieldhouse for your team or something downtown but still near the Indianapolis Airport for your group's easy arrival and departure, you can find Indianapolis group travel accommodations through our sales department. We would be happy to check availability for your friends, family, clients, conference or team. Call one of us if you need anything!

Christian Celis-Schemidt, Director of Sales, (317) 405-5708,
Camille Lauer, Corporate Sales Manager, (317) 405-5709,
Lindsay Gill, Leisure & Online Sales Manager, (317) 405-5710 and
Marcy Schwegman, Banquet & Meeting Manager (317) 405-5711.

Indianapolis Colts & Lucas Oil Stadium

Tuesday, September 1, 2009 by Lindsay Gill

It's FOOTBALL SEASON!! This Thursday, September 3 marks the end of the Indianapolis Colts' preseason! Our first regular season game is Sunday, September 13. The Indianapolis Colts face off against the Jacksonville Jaguars at home! I don't know about your team, but we have Blue Friday here in Indy. Our hotel celebrates the Colts games by displaying larger-than-life Colts players in the lobby, flags in our lobby palm trees, and a banner or two.

Of course, most employees really love Blue Friday because we get to wear something a bit more casual and our Indianapolis Colts jerseys! You can check out our team spirit on our Facebook page photo gallery! We even bring out the war paint and temporary tattoos from time to time! Are you a member of the Colts Blue Crew? You should be!

Of the hotels near Lucas Oil Stadium, we may not be the closest, but we certainly bleed blue (most of us). When you are searching for Indianapolis hotel reservations, whether you're supporting the Colts or the Texans, 49ers or Jets, we'd love to have you stay at the Hilton Garden Inn Indianapolis Downtown! If you're coming from out of town for the Titans game, or any other, call me to check for Indianapolis group travel options!

Home Games:
Sun, 9/13: Jacksonville Jaguars
Sun, 10/4: Seattle Seahawks
Sun, 11/1: San Francisco 49ers
Sun, 11/8: Houston Texans
Sun, 11/15: New England Patriots
Sun, 12/6: Tennessee Titans
Sun, 12/13: Denver Broncos
Sun, 12/27: New York Jets

Get Cultured in September

Thursday, August 20, 2009 by Lindsay Gill

September is a great month for things to do, music to hear and people to see in downtown Indy! If you read my carnivorous post a while back, you know the 14th Annual Rib America Festival kicks off the month. You also know our downtown Indy hotel is the host hotel and has a special room rate and package for the event.

September 12 is the next event. The Penrod Arts Fair takes place on the grounds of the Indianapolis Museum of Art. The IMA is only five miles from the Hilton Garden Inn Indianapolis Downtown. The Fair is the largest single day art event in the U.S.! And it's family friendly, so check it out! That same weekend, the Chinese American Festival kicks off with art, performances, food and Chinese medicine. The event is at Military Park, only six blocks from our three star hotel.

What's next? The 14th Annual Irish Fest, also at Military Park! Enjoy music, dancing, food and kid friendly activities like bounce houses. When you're done there, head over to the 29th Fiesta Indianapolis at the American Legion Mall, just a few blocks north of our downtown Indianapolis hotel. It's the city's premier Latino celebration!

Tying up the month will be the week long Indy Jazz Fest. This popular event ends with a huge concert at The Lawn at White River State Park on September 26 and 27. Also on the 26th is the Eiteljorg's WestFest. There's so much to do and see, hear and eat! September will definitely gear you up for the first two weekends in October: Circle City Classic and then The Original and Fabulous Germanfest!

Check out Indianapolis Downtown Inc.'s website for more details! Don't forget to make your Indianapolis hotel reservations at the Hilton Garden Inn Indianapolis Downtown hotel!

Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra

Thursday, August 20, 2009 by Lindsay Gill

If you are going to be traveling regularly to downtown Indianapolis over the next year or so, you should definitely attend one of the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra’s upcoming concerts. The 2009-2010 Season starts this September and will end in May of 2010. Throughout this period, you can experience an outstanding repertoire of classic creations by the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra…how do we know this? Christian Celis-Schemidt, our Director of Sales, has joined the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra’s Board of Directors.

Within this organization, one of the things Christian will work toward is advancing the artistic contribution that this fine organization makes to our city, by raising the awareness to expand its audience. So, if you are in town over the next few months, please check the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra’ website for performances (http://www.icomusic.org). Also, starting in September, the Chamber Orchestra will be celebrating its 25^th year and for the occasion, they will feature a myriad of talented musicians for every taste and every season. Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and Handel’s Messiah are only glimpses of the upcoming performances.

A collaborative creation with the American Pianist Association is also a part of this celebration. “ICO [Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra] Conversations concert will feature a performance by American Pianists Association Fellow, Adam Golka, followed by a distinctive, intimate discussion about music. This unique concert experience caters to audience involvement, allowing the exploration of the lives and contributions of pianist-composers such as Rachmaninoff, Chopin, and Liszt”. Be a part of this fine organization by joining Christian at these distinguished concerts!

Why not make a night of it? While enjoying the ICO at the Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana History Center – Frank and Katrina Basile Theater, stay at a historic hotel in Indianapolis! It's a great idea for Indianapolis group travel. Call Christian at (317) 405-5708 and he can help you set up a hotel package with the ICO and a block of rooms at our beautiful Indianapolis downtown hotel!

The Ice Cream Men!

Tuesday, August 18, 2009 by Teresa Tracy

Things are heating up in Indianapolis! Our General Manager, Mike Campbell and our Director of Sales, Christian decided to help a very important client stay cool in the summer heat. Last Friday they took an ice cream cart full of cold treats. They even dressed for the occasion in the old time Good Humor uniform. To say the least…our clients were thrilled! The team at the Hilton Garden Inn Indianapolis Downtown loves having fun and we are not afraid to think outside of the box. Great job guys!

Has it been a long day at work? Need something refreshing? Come to the American Grill and check out our new drink menu. We offer amazing selection of wines and an array of specialty martinis. How does a Dreamsicle sound, or a Raspberry Truffle? Yes, these are martinis. You don't want to drink on an empty stomach so ask for our new dinner menu. Our culinary staff is here to service you. Come in between now and September 30, 2009 and mention our blog to receive a 10% discount.

When you have an event to plan and you want something different? Call us, we can make any event memorable.

Hotel Tax Increase

Friday, August 14, 2009 by Lindsay Gill

It's been all over the news lately: How will Indianapolis fix the Capital Improvement Board's $46 million deficit? Most of the talks have centered around taxes. It has now fallen on downtown Indianapolis hotels, and all Marion County hotels, to help fund the ailing CIB.

Hotel taxes in Marion County will increase from 9% to 10%. This will make total taxes paid on a hotel room 17%. From hotels near Indianapolis Convention Center to hotels near the Indianapolis Airport, east, west, north or south will make that jump on September 1, 2009. This means that $99 rate will be $115.83 instead of $114.84 - not a huge difference right? The $199 rates during races at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway will now be $232.83 instead of $230.84...again, not a large difference.

There is a lot of media hype about Indianapolis being one of the nation's highest in hotel tax. That is a fact but look what little difference it makes. We all have to roll with the punches sometimes and make changes when it comes to supporting and improving our city. This is just one thing Marion County will be doing to help the CIB.

Leave a comment and let us know what you think!

New Bedding Selected for Guestroom Renovation

Friday, August 14, 2009 by Michael Campbell

In order to maintain our 3 star hotel downtown Indianapolis status we are placing orders now to upgrade our facility by the end of the year.

As the Hilton Garden Inn Indianapolis Downtown moves forward with its new hotel renovation project we are upgrading all of our bedding to the Garden Sleep System Bed by Natural Form. This bedding system self adjusts to your personal comfort level. We currently have this bedding system in our suites but by year's end this will be available in each guestroom. Check out the link to see the technology behind this bed. Below is a photo of one of our existing hotel room in our Indianapolis Downtown hotel. The carpeting is also slated for replacement and I'll give a copy of the new color scheme in my next blog.

This GSS bedding system also helps fulfill our commitment as one of the prominent green hotels in Indianapolis.

One environmental benefit of this Garden Sleep System bedding is its component construction. This will allow us to replace only the portion of the bed that has either failed or been damaged. Unlike a Sleep Number bed or traditional spring mattress, we will not have to discard the entire mattress into a landfill if it is damaged through abuse, component failure, a wine stain, or normal wear, we will be able to reduce the amount of material that has to be discarded. This will lessen our solid waste footprint and will also allow us to keep costs down by not having to replace an entire mattress.

As for our outgoing mattresses, I promise to find them a good home. They are 6 years old and still in very good shape, and will likely be either donated or resold to another facility so that they will not immediately wind up in a landfill.

Hilton eTools

Thursday, August 6, 2009 by Lindsay Gill

In this age of technology, social media like Facebook and Twitter let us stay in touch. Gadgets like portable GPS trackers and map applications on our PDAs make it easier to find that Indianapolis conference hotel or hotels near Indianapolis Convention Center. So, why wouldn't those hotels you're searching provide something to make life easier on you?

Let me introduce Hilton eTools! Group Value Dates let you search for our hotel and find out what hotel deals we're offering for holding your event or setting up a room block here. From here you can submit a request for a proposal and get an email back shortly. Guest List Manager allows you to keep track of those guests in your room block, see if there are rooms still left in the block and edit/make/cancel hotel reservations.

You can plan your meeting, all online, from the comfort of your own home/desk/office with Hilton's event resources. My personal favorite, the Personalized Group Web Page, allows guests to reserve their rooms inside the block without inputting a group code or making any long distance phone calls. The best part about it? You, as the group administrator, can build the page and add in group-specific information. For example, an itinerary of a wedding weekend, schedule for a meeting or family reunion activities. You can also add up to two pictures to really personalize it and make it yours.

All Hilton Family hotels have these tools. So the next time you're using that GPS on your PDA to search for "Indianapolis Wedding Hotels" or "Indianapolis Meeting Hotels", why not check out the Hilton Garden Inn Indianapolis Downtown to see how we can take some planning stress from you with these great eTools!

Feeling Charitable?

Wednesday, July 29, 2009 by Lindsay Gill

I have recently had the pleasure of partnering with two great organizations in the hopes of helping others. The first is Ovar'Coming Together, Indiana's nonprofit ovarian cancer education and resource organization. The second is the Muscular Distrophy Association.

September 26, 2009 will mark the 2009 Ovarian Cancer Run & Walk benefitting Ovar'Coming Together. The event begins at Victory Field at 9am. You or your company/organization can help by donating, registering to walk or volunteering. Our Indianapolis downtown hotel is helping by raising awareness by adding symptom cards to our employee's paychecks, displaying flyers at the Front Desk, wearing the teal wristbands from the organization. Also, we are offering discount hotel rooms for the run & walk. $10 per room night will be donated to Ovar'Coming Together.

The Muscular Distrophy Association is holding their annual lockup again! I will be removed from my hotel on Thursday, August 27 and taken to "jail" for GOOD. In order to be released, I need to make bail. I'm asking friends, family, guests and business partners to help bail me out and donate to MDA. In this economy, we all have a better hold on our cash, which means there are less people donating to organizations like this. Luckily, small donations go a long way! Help me help Jerry's Kids by stopping by my site and donating today!

Do you donate to any charities? If you are passionate about a charity and would like to let us know how Indianapolis area hotels can help, please comment on this post!

HGI to be connected to the Indianapolis Cultural Trail

Friday, July 24, 2009 by Michael Campbell

One result of our expressed interest in environmental issues and our desire to be one of the more green hotels in Indianapolis is our exposure to other area greening projects.

As a representative of a Downtown Indy Hotel I've recently been able to sit in on a few meetings that have highlighted some of the important steps that Indianapolis is doing to become a greener and more environmentally friendly city. Currently the Indiana Cultural Trail construction is already well underway and will pass within one block of our hotel sometime next year. Our central location on this trail will connect the Hilton Garden Inn hotel in all four directions via the trail to all the major cultural districts including the Fountain Square, Wholesale District, Mass Avenue and the Murat Centre, the Canal and White River State Park, and of course Monument Circle. If you know someone looking for a conference hotel in Indianapolis, another corridor of this trail will branch off to the Indianapolis Convention Center and Lucas Oil Stadium making this a very pleasant walk from the hotel for conventioneers, Colts Fans, or others on Indianapolis group travel.

Once completed, the Indy Cultural Trail will connect with the existing Monon Trail which will give guests staying at the hotel easy access to Broad Ripple Village as well. Check out the Cultural Trail's site if you get a chance. The storm water planters and natural vegetation will really add to the feel of Downtown Indy and enhance the experience for both cyclists and pedestrians. Very cool stuff.

To check out our own environmental projects check out our own environmental statement at the top of the screen.