Stephen Darling

Stephen Darling recently stepped off the corporate treadmill –after 37 consecutive years in the hospitality industry in three countries.  Most recently the Regional Vice President and General Manager for Shangri-La Hotels & Resorts in North America, Stephen is now focusing on hospitality project consulting and board directorships.

Stephen was previously GM of The Westin Grand, Vancouver, and with Shangri-La for ten years.  He managed The Churchill in London, England, and was part of the opening team for Mandarin Oriental’s first hotel in North America.

Darling readily admits that he entered the hospitality industry by default following two summers spent working as a bellman in one of Quebec City’s established hotels. Thereafter, he obtained a Hospitality Management Diploma at Concordia University, and subsequently did a BSc at Cornell’s School of Hotel Administration.

Stephen brings a wealth of hotel operational and strategic experience to G7 and is known for sharing his 39 years of hospitality experience and knowledge with industry colleagues and candidates.  He sat on Vancouver Community College’s Hospitality Management Program Advisory Committee; was named Canada’s 2001 Hotelier of the Year by Hotelier Magazine; was Chair of Tourism Vancouver’s Board for 2002/03. He is a Past Chair of Vancouver Hotel Association and was a director of the Pacific Rim Institute of Tourism.  Stephen was Co-Chair of the Yes 2010 team, which was instrumental in Vancouver’s bid for the 2010 Winter Olympic games.  He earned his icd.d certification from the Institute of Corporate Directors of Canada –and currently sits on two boards –in addition to his project consulting practice.

You can reach Stephen at Tel +1 604 734 7379 or stephen.darling@g7hospitality.com