HotelsMag January-February 2015 | Page 16

Honoring HOTELS 2014

On November 10 at the New York Palace , HOTELS presented to Elisabeth Gürtler , managing director of Sacher Hotels in Vienna , and Hilton Worldwide CEO Chris Nassetta its 2014 Hotelier of the World awards .

“ I honestly think of myself as the luckiest guy in the world ,” Nassetta told some 250 people who gathered to fête the winners . “ I love everything about what I do and the people I work with … It ’ s easy to get caught up in what we do in our business lives and I ’ m fortunate enough to have people in my life who make sure my priorities in life are balanced . I wake up every morning and travel worldwide with a smile on my face . The passion of what we do is incredible . It is an honor to be a part of this .”
Gürtler reflected by saying , “ You can only be successful when you have
HOTELS Publisher Dan Hogan , Independent Hotelier of the World Elisabeth Gürtler ,
Corporate Hotelier of the World Chris Nassetta , HOTELS Editor in Chief Jeff Weinstein
the right people working with you . When you think of the great hotels of the world , you think of the bigger ones in the bigger cities . To be honored as a hotelier in Vienna is incredible .”
Jonathan Gray of Blackstone celebrates with friend and colleague Chris Nassetta
Kathy Hewitt with former Hotelier of the World award winner Tom Hewitt
Chris Nassetta congratulates Elisabeth Gürtler during the awards ceremony
12 HOTELS January / February 2015 www . hotelsmag . com