The beautiful Auburn Marriott Opelika Hotel and Conference Center at Grand National, nestled on 2,000 acres of lakefront countryside, is displaying a new look, new address and new honors from ConventionSouth magazine. Overlooking the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, this Auburn hotel offers 54 holes of championship golf, a stunning location for a business retreat, a peaceful, serene atmosphere, and is only a ten-minute drive from Auburn University.

New look
Converted to a Marriott in March 2005, the Auburn Marriott Opelika Hotel and Conference Center at Grand National has undergone a major renovation. The $2 million upgrade to the 129-room hotel included new 4,200 square feet of carpeting throughout all public areas, meeting rooms and ballrooms. The hotel's exterior corridors were enclosed to protect guests from the elements.

Each guest room has undergone a transformation with the new artwork and Marriott's luxurious bedding. Even the hotel's Auburn restaurant was refurbished and a new menu is being unveiled, according to Jay Prater, general manager of the hotel.

"Meeting groups will find the hotel's new game room with its pool table, comfortable seating areas and lots of Auburn memorabilia to be great for teambuilding," said Prater. Hoar Construction from Birmingham was the general contractor for the renovation. "Since opening as The Lodge five years ago, our hotel staff has welcomed business travelers, golfers, vacationers and Auburn fans from around the world. Now, we have taken the hotel to the next level and are implementing several enhancements found in Marriott resorts around the world. While new carpets and enclosed hallways are nice, we believe the new Marriott bedding with luxurious sheets, comforters with duvets laundered between every guest stay, and pillow-top mattresses may be the most popular changes for our guests."

Most of the 114 guest rooms and 15 luxury suites overlook the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail's Grand National golf courses. The Auburn Marriott Opelika is part of the resort division of the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail and will be the first hotel in the Auburn area to be smoke-free.

New Address
The street name for the hotel and the Grand National golf courses has changed from Sunbelt Parkway to Robert Trent Jones Trail. "As a part of the Trail's resort collection, the new name helps emphasize our relationship with this world-class golf trail," said Prater. The new address of the Marriott is 3700 Robert Trent Jones Trail.

New Award
The Auburn Marriott Opelika Hotel and Conference Center at Grand National was recently presented with ConventionSouth magazine's annual Readers' Choice Award. ConventionSouth editors asked meeting professionals to name the convention and visitors bureaus (CVBs), convention centers, conference centers, hotels, resorts and other meeting sites that they believe display exemplary creativity and professionalism to groups.

More than 18,500 readers were asked to cast their votes for the Readers' Choice Awards, and only the top vote getters out of approximately 2,000 meeting sites and CVBs received this recognition. Readers' comments ranged from the very simple to the very detailed, with some readers even bestowing accolades to particularly outstanding staff members.

"The value in receiving this recognition is that it comes from the United States' top meeting planners who book events in the South. These planners demand the highest level of customer service and quality facilities, and they have determined that the recipients of ConventionSouth's Readers' Choice Awards do indeed display the commitment to professionalism, creativity, excellence and outstanding customer service they require," said ConventionSouth President and Publisher J. Talty O'Connor. "It is an honor to announce that the Auburn/Opelika Marriott at Grand National was selected by these planners as one of the best in the South for 2006."

Designed for business and social events, the hotel's conference center includes 15,000 square feet of event space, including ten meeting rooms, all of which are being updated. The ballroom offers an elegant setting for receptions of up to 480 guests. An indoor amphitheater provides an ideal video conference location.

In 2005, the Auburn Marriott Opelika was honored by Meetings South readers as one of the region's top meeting hotels. Additionally, the Auburn hotel was named the top city for golf by Golf Digest in 2005.

Auburn Marriott Opelika Hotel & Resort
Overlooking the award-winning Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, this Auburn hotel is on par with the nation's most distinctive facilities. Just 75 minutes from Atlanta's Hartsfield International Airport, the nationally renowned retreat is the region's premier golf and lakeside resort, located in the quaint, historic town of Opelika. Guests also enjoy the Auburn University hotel's convenient location and its close proximity to the school's wonderful traditions.

Situated on the shores of Lake Saugahatchee, this Auburn, AL hotel offers 54 challenging holes of championship golf designed by legendary architect, Robert Trent Jones. Escape from ordinary Opelika hotels and indulge in the finest mix of business and pleasure. Enjoy guest rooms designed with the finest attention to detail complete with private balconies providing stunning views of the lush green fairways and sparkling lakes at this incredible Auburn, Alabama hotel. Discover an elegant oasis at the incomparable Auburn Marriott Opelika, AL Hotel & Conference Center at Grand National. For more information, visit http://marriott.com/property/propertypage/csgab, or call (334) 741-9292.

About PCH Hotels & Resorts
PCH Hotels & Resorts is owned by the Retirement Systems of Alabama (RSA) which also has investments in Alabama's Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, Raycom Media, 55 Water Street in New York, Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc. and other interests. PCH, the Resort Division of the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail, is a collection of world-class hotels located throughout Alabama. For more information on PCH Hotels and Resorts, visit www.pchresorts.com. Visit www.rtjgolf.com for more information on the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail.