GLOBAL REPORT—Hoteliers are thinking outside the box when it comes to personalizing the guest experience by offering unique in-room extras beyond standard amenities and tech needs.
The Kimpton Glover Park Hotel in Washington, D.C., is in the process of finding the perfect in-room telescopes to provide guests with an excellent view of downtown D.C., the Washington Monument and the Potomac River, GM Jennifer Harris said.
“We have about 45 to 50 rooms that have views into downtown D.C.,” she said. “(The telescopes) are not in the rooms yet, but we’re going to put telescopes in those rooms so that people can get a better view, and really be able to see things like the (Washington) Monument, and possibly the Capitol, and across the Potomac a little bit better.”
Harris said the Kimpton Glover Park Hotel tried out telescopes that cost $150 per telescope in the rooms, determined that they weren’t the right quality and have since continued testing different telescopes. She said the hotel is considering telescopes that cost anywhere between $200 and $300, and hopes they’ll be installed in the rooms by mid-August.
The rooms that will include telescopes are located above the hotel and only provide views into the downtown area, Harris said.
“There will not be an opportunity to see anywhere except for that downtown area with the way that the building is set and the rooms we’ve chosen to put (the telescopes) into,” she said.
Giving guests a better night’s sleep
At the Hilton Los Cabos Beach & Golf Resort in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, guests staying in La Vista Club rooms can select a different aromatherapy scent each night by making a selection on a wooden board.
“The (aromatherapy selection) board is wood,” said Gabriela van der Lee, director of sales and marketing at Hilton Los Cabos Beach & Golf Resort. “Mexico is famous for using a lot of heavy wood in our culture, so we embrace the thick type of wood to create these boards.”
Guests can choose from four different aromatherapy moods: joy, tranquil, vibrant and inspirit. Each mood has a scent linked to it, such as lemon, green tea, citrus bamboo or Mexican vanilla, and housekeepers spray the scents over bed linens during turndown services.
“It’s one of those details that helps in customizing the guest experience,” she said. “We believe it complements the benefits that already exist as far as the benefits and experience guests get while staying in La Vista Club (rooms).”
Conrad Hotels & Resorts properties across the country offer a complimentary pillow menu to guests during their stay, according to John T.A. Vanderslice, global head of luxury & lifestyle brands at Hilton Worldwide Holdings.
“Conrad Hotels & Resorts began offering guests a pillow menu in 2008 to ensure travelers sleep well, even when away from home,” he said via email. “Conrad has taken the concept a step further by including destination-based, mood-inspired pillows to make guests more comfortable than ever.”
He said the Conrad Singapore offers an “organic buckwheat pillow” to guests, which molds to the shape of the head to allow air circulation and help relieve migraines, tension and muscle spasms. The three most popular choices on the pillow menu are the firm nonallergenic pillow, the contour pillow and the “Cuddle U” pillow, according to Vanderslice.
“Guests can pick their pillow in advance via the Conrad Concierge app or upon arrival, depending on their preference,” he said. “It’s a complimentary service, but pillows are also available for purchase so guests can (take) them home.”
Supporting local artists, communities
The Rosewood Mayakoba in Playa del Carmen, Mexico, began a partnership with local artisans in 2015 to create handmade alebrijes—or small Oaxacan-Mexican folk art sculptures—to leave on the beds of guests staying at the hotel, according to Daniel Scott, managing director of the Rosewood Mayakoba.
“Each alebrije comes with a message that translates the animal’s name into the Mayan language and details what it represents in Mayan culture,” he said via email.
Scott said the hotel decided to invest in the complimentary alebrijes to support the Riviera Maya and local artisans, and because the alebrijes “support Rosewood Hotels & Resorts’ ‘sense of place’ philosophy by sharing the culture, tradition and artists of the region.”
He said guests often take the alebrijes with them, and post photos of their tiny sculptures on Twitter and Instagram.