February 19, 2010 | Reality Show Real State Rakes in Profit
Although most "Real World" properties are either taken over by businesses -- like restaurant chains ("Real World:
Austin"), gyms ("Real World: Chicago") and nonprofits ("Real World: Boston") -- others are vacant or simply don't
exist anymore, like the "Real World: Hawaii" home. But there are two hotel suites that are still stacking profits from
"Real World" fame.
For the Sol Melia ME resort in Cancun, Mexico, where "Real World: Cancun" was filmed, weekend rates range from
$5,000 to $7,000 a night on average, said the resort's general manager, Raul Petraglia, but the price isn't deterring
customers.
"The show was phenomenal," said Tony Cortizas of Sol Melia's marketing department. "The hotel got unbelievable
exposure, as a hotel and a destination." Everything in the suite looks nearly identical to the way it looked on the
show, because "the identity of the suite is part and parcel of the show itself," he said.
On "The Real World: Cancun," what went down in the suite was not exactly the perfect PR -- particularly for a
company like Sol Melia, which doesn't do any advertising. The company -- which has resort hotels in Cancun and
Cabo San Lucas -- has hosted not just "The Real World," but also "The Hills," VH1's "Rock of Love" and "Rock of
Love 2," and even Tila Tequila's show.
Associating the Sol Melia brand with those shows is "something that we go back and forth on all the time," said
Victoria Martinez, who is part of Sol Melia's public relations team. "But what brings it home for me is that the
eyeballs watching the show are different than the cast that's playing out on the TV."
While many hate to admit it, Martinez said, a lot of high-rollers watch these shows.
"And those are the people who are booking. They don't care who was there and who was doing what, they saw it, it
resonated and they're booking the trip," she said.
By Breeanna Hare CNN Entertainment : http://www.cnn.com/2010/SHOWBIZ/TV/02/19/reality.show.real.estate/index.html
