Hilton Capitol Center recommended for AAA recognition

The Hilton Baton Rouge Capitol Center is on track for a four-diamond rating in AAA’s 2010 travel directory. No Baton Rouge-area hotel currently has that designation, AAA says. “This steps us up a class and shows that we have this type of property in the community,” says Paul Arrigo, president and CEO of the Baton Rouge Area Convention & Visitors Bureau. Groups considering visiting the city will sometimes ask about four-diamond or four-star properties, Arrigo says. Having a four-diamond hotel gives Baton Rouge another feature to sell to tourists and conventions. Four-diamond hotels “are upscale in all areas” and “include an extensive array of amenities combined with a high degree of hospitality, service and attention to detail,” AAA says. Inspections have been completed; the recommendation must still be officially approved at the national level, AAA spokesman Mike Right says. However, Capitol Center managing director of sales and marketing Tina Rance says the hotel has been given the go-ahead to promote the designation. “When we opened the hotel, we found people were really ready for an upscale-level hotel in this city,” Rance says. AAA’s Web site lists 16 four-diamond hotels in Louisiana, all in New Orleans. There are no five-diamond hotels in Louisiana.—David Jacobs