Has Paris Hilton Tarnished the Hilton Hotel Brand?

Last weekend I found myself on the poolside lawn of a Hilton hotel in Carlsbad, California, visiting out-of-town friends staying there. We were watching “Happy Feet” under the stars—their young boy was munching all-you-can-eat popcorn, riveted by the talking penguins on the hotel wall—and I was thinking about Paris Hilton. Her imprisonment was winding down, and I wondered whether her transgressions were having any impact on business at Hilton hotels. Did anyone who’d made a reservation associate the hotel chain with the infamous heiress? Were there any empty spots on the lawn that night because some anti-Paris families had opted instead for a Hyatt?

I didn’t know for sure, but I suspected that most people planning their vacations had more immediate concerns—like the cost of their room, their hotel’s location, etc.—to be bothered by any theoretical connection between a particular Hilton property and the then-imprisoned hotel heiress.

That’s just what a couple of hotel and branding experts told the AP.

One hotel industry analyst didn’t think the hotel chain would suffer any long-term damage.

A public relations expert said: “Do I think their beds are going to be lumpy as a result? No. The only real backlash may be some snickering at the hotel’s expense.”

That seems to be the concensus among those commenting at Brandcurve.com, too.

Paris Hilton told Larry King last night that her weeks in jail gave her “a time-out in life.”

Which, I suspect, is all those families staying at the Hilton in Carlsbad wanted.

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