By Lena Katz
I don’t know about you, but I don’t spend nearly enough time at the Four Seasons Wailea. Or the Banyan Tree Phuket. Or any Shangri-La, anywhere. I am a strictly business traveler, and sadly, those hotels don’t often fit into my itinerary.
And I’m a travel writer, so I can only imagine how much worse the plight is for a corporate type. You’re dreaming of Shangri-La, sleeping in a nondescript Kansas City hotel, and wondering, "Why is life so unfair?"
Apparently a lot of hoteliers have started to wonder the very same thing, because at the annual American Lodging Investment Summit in January, the hot topic was … drumroll … the resurgence of the "new, cool, comfortable" business hotel.
Whether in the Caribbean, Hawaii or the big city, that hotel category is starting to get a lot more attention, just because business travelers have such endless need of it. Road warriors get understandably tired of lumpy beds and instant coffee. They want a little something extra … and they’re about to get it.
The W Hotel Group (and its parent company Starwood) have probably made the biggest splash, with their well-publicized launch of the Aloft brand, a "vision" of contemporary, bright-and-styley city hotels that promises to revolutionize the concept of corporate lodging.
Hilton Hotels has devised a (warning, cheesy pun ahead) tasteful promotion for its Homewood Suites chain: free personal grocery shopping for guests who want to utilize their en suite kitchens, and free beer, wine and "light dinner" (Monday-Thursday) for those who want to utilize the sit-around-and-do-nothing feature.
Meanwhile, other hotel groups are expanding their established business travel brand into under-the-radar destinations.
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