More hotels are beginning to take the habits of travellers from the Millennial generation into consideration when redesigning their guest rooms.
Millennials – tech-savvy people in their 20s and 30s – are travelling more for work compared with previous generations at the same age, meaning that hotels are increasingly catering for their needs when it comes to the bed, desk and other room facilities, USA Today reports.
Choice Hotels International’s Cambria Suites brand now offers rooms with Bluetooth-enabled televisions and the ability to play music straight from mobile devices.
The company’s Comfort Inn and Comfort Suites brands also provide multi-outlet recharging devices with USB ports on room desks.
In addition, hotels are increasingly reviewing desk space in light of changes to how travellers use them in the modern age, making them smaller and much more flexible than they used to be.
“Some people work at the desk, some people work on the bed, some people work on the floor. The flexibility of being able to work anywhere is important,” remarked Anne Smith, vice president of brand strategy at Choice Hotels International.
At Crowne Plaza, a new room design has been developed to offer multiple working spaces – a compact workspace, a cocooned bed and a nook area. Meanwhile, Marriott has been trialling desks more akin to adjustable coffee tables that can be used anywhere in the room.
Reviewing room design in this way for both business and leisure travellers could provide financial benefits to hotels who manage to win repeat custom from Millennial customers. Research from the World Youth Student and Educational Travel Confederation suggests that Millennials spend an average of $125 more on travel per trip than the typical traveller does.
With Millennials representing one-fifth of all travellers worldwide, there are significant advantages to targeting accommodation to the needs of this generation.
