Mercato in Naples Hosting Int'l Food Festival

We love festivals in Naples Florida and are excited about the newest addition to our area!  Mercato in Naples Florida is located 4 miles North of the Hilton Naples Florida Hotel.

Kid Friendly Things to do in Naples Florida

It's a beautiful, crisp clear day in Naples Florida.  Perfect weather to enjoy the great outdoor activities Naples has to offer.

A kid friendly things to do in Naples today:

• Visit the butterfly garden at Naples Botanical Gardens
• Take a cruise while visiting with the monkeys at the Naples Zoo
• Explore the unique ecosystems, flora, birds and other wildlife at Corkscrew Swamp

Hilton Naples guests can use the complimentary bicycles to explore the beautiful residential & beach areas

Celebrate Earth Day in Naples Florida



Come Celebrate Earth Day in Naples Florida this weekend by participating in several activities going on around town.

• Party for the Planet - Get wild at the Naples Zoo with their Party for the Planet happening 9am-5pm on Saturday. This kid friendly thing to do features the party's Zoo Town, the Conservation Center and for you die-hard shoppers, peruse Nature's Mall. 
• Earth Day 2012 Festival at the Conservancy of Southwest Florida is a free festival going on from 9am-3pm on Saturday.  Featuring a kids' carnival, family programs, environmental exhibits, food & crafts.  TIP: Bring 20 clean plastic shopping bags for recycling & get a free pass to a Florida State Park -while supplies last.  
• Enjoy the Free Earth Day Open House at the Naples Philharmonic Center from 10am to 4pm.  Enjoy a solar energy demonstration, a treasure hunt through the museum where kids can learn about good environmental practices and a pledge tree where families can pledge what they're doing to help protect the environment. 

Celebrate Earth Day in Naples Florida

The Hilton Naples became the first hotel in Naples to become a Green Hotel as certified by  Florida Green Lodging  in November of 2007. After successfully implementing their initial green initiatives and sustaining them for more than one year, they became “Two Palm” certified in May 2009. In order to remain a green lodging certified property, new and innovative plans must be put into place each year to further conservation efforts. In November 2011, the Hilton Naples once again qualified to be a Certified Green Lodging Hotel.  The Hilton Naples Hotel also encourages their guests and fellow travelers to "Go Green" with some Green Tips while traveling.

One of the biggest advances in our hotel's dedication to "Go Green" is the implementation of a Sky Vine garden on the section of the hotel's roof over the ballroom area. Sky Vine is indigenous to the Naples area, and the hotel has covered this area in order to eliminate direct exposure to the sun, thereby decreasing the amount of energy necessary to cool the ballroom. The garden will be watered with reclaimed condensation from the powerful chiller units that cool the property's interior, and the vines will be coaxed to grow along a wire grid. Once there is adequate coverage on the roof, the vines will be extended to cover the chiller units in order to decrease the amount of energy the units use to run efficiently.

A small sampling of the current initiatives that the Hilton Naples Hotel currently participates in.

• Sheets and towel reuse option for multiple night stays to conserve water 
• Energy efficient lighting has been installed in guestrooms, lobby, hallways, public restrooms, meeting rooms and parking areas.
• Recycling containers are located in all guest rooms, staff areas, offices, lobby area, conference rooms, pool, near vending machines, and the kitchen.
• Recycled paper products such as bath tissue, facial tissue, paper towels and napkins are utilized.
• The Hilton recycles aluminum, plastic, glass, cardboard, newspaper, office paper, toner cartridges, electronics, fluorescent lamps and carpet.
• Environmentally friendly chemicals and detergents are used in cleaning & laundry
• Low VOC materials (paint, adhesives, air freshener, and carpet) are used on the property.
• Chiller settings have been adjusted to reduce relative humidity to prevent mold and mildew.
• Windows have properly installed weather stripping.

Furthering our commitment to minimizing our effect on our environment, he Hilton Naples Hotel participates in Hilton Worldwide’s LightStay, a proprietary system developed to calculate and analyze environmental impact, to the public today, following two years of rigorous internal testing. LightStay takes into account energy and water use and waste and carbon outputs associated with building operations and services provided at Hilton Worldwide properties. As part of this, the system measures indicators across 200 operational practices including housekeeping, paper product use, food waste, chemical storage, air quality and transportation.

 

How will you Celebrate Earth Day 2012?

Conservancy of Southwest Florida FREE Earth Day Festival April 21



FREE Earth Day Festival on Saturday, April 21, 2012

The annual FREE Earth Day Festival on Saturday, April 21 at the Conservancy of Southwest Florida Nature Center. This earth-friendly event is a kid friendly thing to do in Naples and will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.  It will feature environmental exhibitors and vendors, children’s carnival, face-painting, educational presentations, live entertainers and guest speakers.

Special offer: Each guest who brings clean plastic shopping bags for recycling will get a free pass to a Florida State Park – one pass for every 20 plastic shopping bags turned in at the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) exhibit. While supplies last.

Schedule is as follows:

• 10:00 Puppet Show – Caring for Critters
• 11:00 Snake Talk (featuring a live snake)
• 11:40 Captain Ecology
• 12:30 Award Presentation
• 1:00 Raptor Presentation (featuring a live bird of prey)
• 1:30 Captain Conservation
• 2:15 Tortoise Talk followed by walk to Christopher B. Smith Preserve gazebo

No on-site parking is available at the Conservancy, due to ongoing renovations. Free parking will be available within walking distance at the Colonial Square complex, just south of the Post Office on Goodlette-Frank Road and at Lake Park Elementary. For this day only, Earth Day guests will be able to walk into the Conservancy Nature Center via the new entrance from Goodlette-Frank Road, Smith Preserve Way. 

The Conservancy of Southwest Florida and Conservancy Nature Center are located in Naples Florida at 1450 Merrihue Drive, off Goodlette-Frank Road at 14th Avenue North ~ approximately 4 miles from the Hilton Naples Florida Hotel . For information about the Conservancy of Southwest Florida, call 239-262-0304.

I loved the movie Dolphin Tale and can't wait to see it at the outside Movies on the Lawn at Mercato in Naples! Stop by & enjoy BRAVO! Bar Bites before or after the movie for only $2.95 (available at the bar only form 3:30-6:30pm or 9pm-Close).

Mercato is located 4 miles north from the Hilton Naples Florida Hotel

Balloons Over Paradise is a FREE Festival in Naples

There will be no sleeping in for me tomorrow as I venture to see over 30 hot air balloons in flight as the sun rises.  The Balloons Over Paradise Festival opens before sunrise on Saturday morning with a "Dawn Patrol" beginning at 6am. Hot air baloons, lit from within by the gas jets that inflates them, will rise off the ground at 6am creating a sky filled with a glowing rainbow of color.

The Hilton Naples Florida Hotel is proud to be a sponsor of the newest festival in Naples which is anticipated to attract people of all ages to the Immokalee Regional Airport.

The Festival provides a weekend full of excitement & entertainment:

• Over 30 Hot Air Balloons in Flight
• Live Musical Acts featuring John Anderson & Kathy Kosins
• Dog Agility Shows (pets are NOT allowed)
• Local Artists & Crafts
• Children's Activity Village

The Balloons Over Paradise Festival is amazingly it is FREE to attend!  No cover charge and parking is only $5. Coolers, umbrellas and pets are not allowed.  Folding chairs will not be allowed after 3pm.

Hours: 6am-9pm on Saturday and 6am-4pm on Sunday.

General Manager of the Hilton Naples Hotel Wins Naples Chamber Award

Clark Hill, General Manager Hilton Naples Hotel with Katie Sproul, Chairwoman Barron Collier Companies.

Just two weeks ago the Hilton Naples Hotel received the coveted Hilton Brand Award of Excellence from Hilton Hotels and Resorts, This week we have another wonderful reason to celebrate.

Mr. Clark W. Hill, General Manager of the Hilton Naples Hotel, was awarded The Naples Chamber Outstanding Volunteer of the Year Award at their Annual Meeting. A very respectful and appreciative introduction was given and I'd like to share a few excerpts from what was said as Mr. Hill was presented this prestigious award:

"Our 2012 recipient is a remarkable man of character, a very successful business executive, and a well respected Chamber and community leader.

Clark’s enthusiasm and understanding of the mission of The Chamber is what drives his generosity in regards to supporting our programs and events, and is a philosophy that has helped numerous nonprofit entities from our community successfully execute their missions as well.

Clark has an unbelievable heart, and when he hears of some human services need he springs into action and does whatever it takes to resolve the crisis. He is extremely humble about these activities, and most in this room know nothing about them, as the last thing he would want would be for his helping hand to be made public."

Congratulations Mr. Hill. Your team is so proud!

Via Flickr:
Clark Hill, General Manager of the Hilton Naples Hotel, was awarded The Naples Chamber Outstanding Volunteer of the Year Award at their Annual Meeting.

2012 Dining for Wildlife

Naples Florida is known for their great restaurants.  This is an excellent opportunity to try a new dining experience while helping support the local Conservancy of Southwest Florida.  Each year, thousands of injured, orphaned and sick wildlife show up at our doorstep. You can help by participating in the 2012 "Dining for Wildlife" event at our local restaurants.

Just by dining at participating local restaurants, you can help raise over $25,000 to support the Conservancy of Southwest Florida Wildlife Clinic. A list of participating restaurants and the ability to purchase your dining certificates is now online.

Participating restaurants will donate fifty percent of all "Dining for Wildlife" meal certificates sold on select dates in April and May and the funds will support the Conservancy of Southwest Florida Wildlife Clinic. 

Choose from any/all of these dining dates:

• April 22 – April 26, 2012
• April 29 – May 3, 2012
• May 6 – May 10, 2012
• May 13 – May 17, 2012

Easter Bunny to Visit Naples Zoo with Treats for Wild Relatives!

Hunting for Easter eggs is fun for everyone, even the animals at Naples Zoo. During this special three day event from Friday, April 6 to Sunday April 8, 2012, Zoo guests will enjoy watching animals claw and gnaw into special treat-filled eggs.

Zookeepers along with residents from Southwest Florida Brookdale Senior Living communities from Naples to Sarasota are helping out the Easter Bunny by preparing large colorful papier-mâché eggs stuffed with treats for the Zoo’s rare animals. Plus, the Easter Bunny is making appearances in the Zoo’s shows.

Families also enjoy searching out the wild answers to an Easter Scavenger Hunt for a chance to win a Family or Grandparent Zoo Membership.

Hop To It & come enjoy the fun all Easter Weekend!  Don't forget to make your Easter Dinner reservations at Shula's Steak House, located off the lobby of the Hilton Naples Florida Hotel!

Jimmy Keys Performs at the Hilton Naples Hotel

Dinner and show featuring Jimmy Keys in Naples Florida, a unique & hilarious one-man show will be performing Live at the Hilton Naples Hotel. Join us on Tuesday, April 10th for Cocktail Hour, Dinner and Jimmy Keys Show. Cash Bar opens at 6:00pm, followed by Salad Service (salads are served once the whole table arrives). The Dinner Buffet opens once salads are served.



The evening of entertainment via Jimmy Keys begins at 8:00pm. Dinner & Show is $65 per person all inclusive (cash bar). Reservations can be made at 239-659-3174 - please leave a message and your call will be returned. Complimentary valet, self & garage parking available for the Jimmy Keys Show at the Hilton Naples Hotel.

Annual Free Cone Day at Ben & Jerry's

Ben & Jerry's is having a Free Cone Day as a way to thank their customers for their support and to celebrate 34 years of scooping! Enjoy Free Cone Day on Tuesday April 3rd 12:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. as well as face painting and live entertainment at The Village on Venetian Bay from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

The Village on Venetian Bay is located 1.8 miles from the Hilton Naples Florida Hotel.