Design defines hotels' identities

National Report--Travelers are looking for an experience, and that starts with the hotel, according to several designers.

Roger Hill, president of The Gettys Group, called it the lifestyle design trend.

"People are looking for different lifestyle experiences to equate with their lifestyle as it relates to the lodging experience," Hill said. "Different brands have done a really good job of communicating to people that, 'If you stay in our particular brand, this is the kind of experience you'll have, not only from a service delivery perspective, but also from an aesthetic perspective.'"

The trend continues to gain momentum, he said. One reason it has been so successful, particularly in luxury and upper-upscale arenas, is because hotels throughout history were community centers where people went to dine and socialize.

"There's been a new level of energy brought into hotels, where people will go there routinely to dine or drink or have an event they might not have otherwise considered there because they feel that the hotel they're going to has an image that is appropriate for the particular image they see themselves being in," he said.

Leisure travelers want an experience and there's an opportunity for hotels to offer that to them, said Tom Horwitz, senior v.p. with FRCH Design Worldwide. "It's more than a great bed," he said. "It's about a great meal and a great place to shop."

Home suite home

Part of this lifestyle trend is design with a residential feel.

"Now more than ever, the concept of home--the epitome of comfort and security--is an important point of reference for hospitality designers," said Howard J. Wolff, senior v.p. of Wimberly Allison Tong & Goo.

This means bigger rooms and much bigger bathrooms.

"In the luxury tier of the market, bathrooms are approaching 50 percent of a guestroom's square footage," Wolff said. "As an important source of differentiation between competing hotels, bathrooms are becoming highly designed, light-filled, in-room spas-- places for primping, pampering and relaxing."

Kimberley Miller, c.e.o. of Duncan & Miller Design, also pointed to the residential shift.

"Our goal is that the guest should want to take that lobby home and package it and put it in their living room," Miller said. "It should really feel that inviting and comfortable."

Guests are taking the lifestyle home in several ways, Hill said. In some cases, guests can purchase anything from a desk accessory to an entire bed in the gift shop or on a hotel's Web site. The other extreme is people who hire a designer to make their home feel like a particular hotel.

Conscientious consumers

It's no wonder design is taking on more importance for hotels. This decade has seen a movement toward nesting, with people pouring money into their homes and even choosing a hotel based on its design.

"People are a lot more educated about design and [furniture, fixtures and equipment] since there is such a surge in home television shows," said Angela Denney, director in the hospitality and restaurant studio at FRCH Design. "People are exposed to a lot more ideas, so people tend to expect more out of guestrooms now."

Denney said hoteliers are asking what pieces of the guestroom can be changed to seem more proprietary.

"We're seeing some of the midscale brands and limited-service brands start to think outside the box a little and see how they can not exactly compete on the same level as a higher-scale product, but at how they can change their interiors to feel more like a full- service hotel without actually adding a lot of cost to owners," she said.

Denney pointed out the wave of new beds as an example.

"Full-service hotels have taken a look at reinventing their bed and we're starting to see that now even more in the limited-service," she said.

This is part of creating brand loyalty, Denney said.

"The industry is starting to realize the potential there," she said. "We're starting to be forced to look at [brand loyalty] more because of the Internet and the way the rooms are selling. Most of the time there are competitive rates, so [hotels] are looking at how they can win over guests in other ways."

Miller sees the same trend.

"There's a lot more desire in the hotels that we're currently designing for more independent and creative design themes both in the lobby and in the food-and-beverage areas," she said. "Even if it is a nationally known hotel brand it's still, more and more, trying to get more flavor, more customized or more regional. Hoteliers are very much more open to the creativity factor."

Miller credits hoteliers who are willing to experiment.

"When we did Hotel ZaZa [in Dallas], that owner was not constrained by anything," she said. "More and more owners entering the market are willing to take design risks and that is helping to energize what hotel are evolving to."

This requires balance and foresight, according to Wolff.

"The fact that property owners take a long-term view regarding their return on investment means that basic hotel design requires a certain degree of enduring functionality," he said. "But because guest preferences tend to follow short-term trends in lifestyle, hotel design also needs to be limber and relevant.

"For that reason, design is seen as an important differentiator among hotel properties. The objective of the architect and designer is to be both timeless and timely. The trick is for each hotel to find its own identity."

Wolff condensed traveler's desires into three areas. They want connection with people and places; comfort--physical and psychological; and choice, he said.

"Owners, operators and developers who understand these changing desires stand the best chance of capturing a greater share of business," Wolff said.

hgunter@advanstar.com

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