The "modern" push-button hotel in the Expedia commercial ....
is it a real hotel?  If it is real, what is the actual name of 
the hotel and where is it located?

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Request for Question Clarification by sublime1-ga on 09 Aug 2003 15:21 PDT

curious_george...

Apparently you are not the only one to be interested in whether
this is a real hotel. I contacted a Customer Service Representative
at Expedia.com, and she asked around her office. She returned to
the phone indicating that, though none of her colleagues had 
known the answer, they have collectively received many calls on
this very topic. She then provided me access to a means of emailing
the company in such a way that those who might know the answer would
be notified. Since it is the weekend, it is unlikely that the 
answer will be forthcoming before Monday.

I will notify you as soon as I receive a response. If it is not a
real hotel, would you prefer that I provide this information in a
comment, rather than posting it in the answer box? This will
preclude you being charged for the information.

sublime1-ga

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Clarification of Question by curious_george-ga on 10 Aug 2003 09:35 PDT

sublime1-ga

I'm willing to pay 100$ for the answer, regardless of whether it is a
real hotel or not.  If you do the research, and can back up the
answer, you get the reward.

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Request for Question Clarification by sublime1-ga on 10 Aug 2003 11:49 PDT

curious_george...

Thank you for your response. By way of keeping you informed,
in reponse to the initial email I sent, I have been given 
the contact information for the Account Supervisor for the
Public Relations firm which serves Expedia. I have emailed
her, and expect a response when office hours resume on Monday.
I will be in touch with you when I hear from her.

sublime1-ga

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Request for Question Clarification by sublime1-ga on 20 Aug 2003 12:50 PDT

curious_george...

Thank you for your patience. After sending a second email to
the Account Supervisor for the Public Relations firm which serves
Expedia, this time with a read request, I received an automated
response indicating she was away, and referring me to two other
Account Representatives as potential resources. I emailed the
first one 4 days ago, and received no reply, so I emailed the
second one today, and quickly received a reply that he would
obtain the answer ASAP.

It shouldn't be long now before I can post a definitive answer.
I am personally very excited at the prospect of learning the answer.

sublime1-ga

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Request for Question Clarification by sublime1-ga on 21 Aug 2003 19:09 PDT

curious_george...

Well, I'm sorry to say that after all of this, what I have learned
only satisfies one-third of your query, and I'm at a loss as to
where else I can turn for the missing pieces.

Edelman is the public relations firm for Expedia.com, and it was
to them that I was referred by Expedia.com Customer Service:
http://www.expedia.com/daily/press/Default.asp?CCheck=1

Lauren Cohen is listed as the Account Supervisor, however I 
eventually received notice that she was away for some time,
and was referred to her colleagues. One of them, Dan Sherman,
was able to provide me an answer.

The hotel does, indeed, exist. However, it is currently the
policy of Expedia.com not to reveal the name and/or location
of the hotels used in the ads. If, for any reason, that
changes in the immediate future, I will certainly let you
know.

If you only needed verification that the hotel exists, e.g.
to win a bet, then tell your friend to pay up! <grin>
But if, as I suspect, you actually wanted to visit the hotel
and experience its unique qualities, then I'm very sorry to 
have been unable to provide its name and location.

Best regards...

sublime1-ga

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Clarification of Question by curious_george-ga on 28 Aug 2003 07:58 PDT

Ahhh... Thanks for trying sublime.

Now that I know that the Hotel does in fact exist, I am very
interested in finding out where it is located!

Hi curious_george-ga,

Your question intrigued me quite a bit, and it had been 10 days since
sublime1-ga last commented on your question, so I took it upon myself
to investigate (and answer).

I found a few other references (including another question by
yourself) about the hotel. You (and others) correctly saw "Rök Hotel"
on the laptop's screen. However, after investigating further, and
contacting Expedia directly ( 1-800-EXPEDIA ), I can conclusively tell
you that there is NO SUCH HOTEL.

Apparently, so many people were calling/writing/faxing (etc) Expedia,
that an internal memo was sent out to the people there documenting the
fact that the hotel does not exist; the hotel was "created"
specifically for the advertisement. I tried to obtain a copy of the
memo, but, they had no way to forward the memo to me--but, they did
tell me in no uncertain terms that the memo was sent internally, and
that the hotel was fabricated for the advertisement.

It is worth noting that the memo is very new--and would not have been
available (and hence, no true 'answer' could have been given) until
very recently.

I hope that you are satisfied with this answer. It is perhaps not
really what you wanted to hear, but, nonetheless it is accurate and
correct in every way.

To repeat: there is no 'push-button' hotel by the name of Rök Hotel or
any other name. It simply does not exist.

As I was writing this answer, I finally was able to obtain a
confirmation by email from Expedia.

***
From: Expedia Travel Support <travel@customercare.expedia.com>
Subject: hotels/inq/TV commercial - Case ID: [deleted]

Dear [deleted]:

Here is the information you requested:

Thank you for your interest in the hotel depicted in our commercial
however the hotel that is represented is purely fictional, so we
aren't able to make reservations there. But we can still help you find
exactly what you want. Expedia.com offers a wide variety of hotels,
with amenities to suit each and every taste. Simply click the "Hotels"
tab and choose your destination, then take a look at the detailed
photos, property descriptions, and virtual tours provided. I'm certain
that we can help you find a hotel that's just right!


Thank you for being an Expedia.com Customer.

[name deleted]

***

If you have any questions, please ask for clarification prior to
rating and closing this answer.

Thanks,

Legolas-ga

Search used:
modern push-button expedia
modern push-button hotel expedia
modern hotel expedia
modern hotel expedia commercial

I used Google, Google groups ( http://groups.google.com ), and Google
Directory ( http://directory.google.com ) to try to locate the hotel
and/or other people's comments about it

Also, by personally calling 1-800-EXPEDIA

Thanks for the answer!

The Swedish word "Rök" means smoke, as in cigarettes.  Smoking is in
fact much more fashionably prevalent as well as, ahem, allowed here in
Sweden.  Combine the fictitious name of "Smoker's Hotel" with the
typical Scandinavian design shown in the spot, which although is quite
beautiful but not nearly as inviting as your American furnishings, and
you have a potential recipe for an American traveller's nightmare.

A smart ad which unfortunately can't be fully appreciated unless
you've experienced living or travel in Scandinavia.

Bottom line, there's no hotel in Sweden or anywhere else that would
use the name "Rök hotel" unless they wanted to lose the business of
the ever growing non-smoker population.  Plus, not to be smart but,
your first clue it was a fictitious place would be the liability
issues they would have faced depicting any hotel in such a way.

If you're ever in Stockholm, one of our best hotels furnished just the
way the fake hotel is in the spot would be "The Nordic Light Hotel". 
Here's a link to their website:  http://www.nordichotels.se/ I
recommend it highly.

Also, here's a link to a popular Swedish travel bureau if you'd like
to do your own search:
http://www.flygtorget.se/resor/hotell/exp/index.asp

Take care.