The co-owner and operator of Royal Palms Hotel is the Bermuda Hotel Association?s Hotelier of the Year 2004.

Nicholas Weare was saluted at a banquet on Saturday night.

Together with his wife Susan and brother-in-law Richard Smith, Mr. Weare operates the 28-room Royal Palms in Hamilton. Originally an eight-room guest house, it was developed into one of the most successful small hotels in Bermuda.

The hotel is also home of Ascot?s Restaurant.

The CEO of the Bermuda Hotel Association, John Harvey, said Mr. Weare was passionately committed to assisting with the restoration of tourism.

?He has single-handedly developed the Bermuda Hotel Association?s reservation system with a company called Synix which has booked more than $4 million in reservations for BHA member hotels in the last two years,? he said.

He said Mr. Weare recently encouraged a company called Neat, which provides the best possible low airfares, to interface with Synix and the BHA was now able to compete almost globally by providing the best possible priced vacation packages to Bermuda.

?Nick Weare?s accomplishments with the Synix and Neat programs have put BHA?s member hotels in a position to present their product through the Internet to all potential vacationers at a competitive price,? he said.

Mr. Harvey added that this was the most significant development within the BHA in the last two years.

?We are all indebted to Nick Weare?s willingness to give unselfishly of his time and expertise,? he said.

Mr. Weare is a director of the BHA, chairman of the small hotels committee and member of the BHA/BAT sales and marketing and airline committees.

Mr. Weare is also a keen sailor and skier and he and his wife Susan have two sons and reside in Pembroke.