Income Taxes - Deferred Tax Assets (Liabilities) (Detail) (USD $) In Millions, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Plant, property and equipment	$ (1)	$ 45
Intangibles	(51)	(51)
Inventories	61us-gaap_DeferredTaxAssetsInventory	52us-gaap_DeferredTaxAssetsInventory
Deferred gains	396us-gaap_DeferredTaxAssetsDeferredIncome	338us-gaap_DeferredTaxAssetsDeferredIncome
Investments	141	139
Receivables (net of reserves)	(30)hot_DeferredTaxLiabilitiesReceivables	(22)hot_DeferredTaxLiabilitiesReceivables
Accrued expenses and other reserves	117	140
Employee benefits	67	84
Net operating loss, capital loss and tax credit carryforwards	269	270
Other	56us-gaap_DeferredTaxLiabilitiesOther	41us-gaap_DeferredTaxLiabilitiesOther
Total	1,025us-gaap_DeferredTaxAssetsGross	1,036us-gaap_DeferredTaxAssetsGross
Less valuation allowance	(280)	(299)
Deferred income taxes	$ 745us-gaap_DeferredTaxAssetsNet	$ 737us-gaap_DeferredTaxAssetsNet

Deferred tax liabilities receivables.

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Amount before allocation of valuation allowances of deferred tax asset attributable to deductible capital loss carryforwards.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef

-Publisher FASB

-Name Accounting Standards Codification

-Topic 740

-SubTopic 10

-Section 50

-Paragraph 6

-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6907707&loc=d3e32621-109319

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-Section 25

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Amount before allocation of valuation allowances of deferred tax asset attributable to deductible temporary differences from deferred income.

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Amount before allocation of valuation allowances of deferred tax asset attributable to deductible temporary differences from equity method investments.

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Amount before allocation of valuation allowances of deferred tax asset attributable to deductible temporary differences and carryforwards.

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Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef

-Publisher FASB

-Name Accounting Standards Codification

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-SubTopic 10

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-Paragraph 2

-Subparagraph (b)

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Amount before allocation of valuation allowances of deferred tax asset attributable to deductible temporary differences from inventory.

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Amount after allocation of valuation allowances of deferred tax asset attributable to deductible temporary differences and carryforwards.

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The tax effect as of the balance sheet date of the amount of the estimated future tax deductions arising from employee benefit costs not otherwise specified in the taxonomy, which can only be deducted for tax purposes when actual costs are incurred, and which can only be realized if sufficient tax-basis income is generated in future periods to enable the deduction to be taken.

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Amount before allocation of valuation allowances of deferred tax asset attributable to deductible temporary differences from other reserves not separately disclosed.

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Amount of deferred tax assets for which it is more likely than not that a tax benefit will not be realized.

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Amount of deferred tax liability attributable to taxable temporary differences from intangible assets other than goodwill.

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Amount of deferred tax liability attributable to taxable temporary differences not separately disclosed.

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Amount of deferred tax liability attributable to taxable temporary differences from property, plant, and equipment.

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