Dogs: A Hotel’s Best Friend

Hotels are making significant changes to attract and entertain today’s guests. Consumers have endless options when it comes to finding a place to stay. Hotels compete on a number of levels: room size, bathroom amenities, gym gadgets, reward programs and many more. Now they must go the extra mile to attract discerning travelers while understanding ever-changing consumer taste. Brands like Marriott, Starwood, Hyatt, and InterContinental must find innovative ways to lure travelers to their properties.

Hotels are offering everything from farm-to-table dining options, state-of-the-art recording studios, pet-focused amenities and in-room pillow menu. Hospitality companies providing lavish amenities have become the new normal in the industry.

The Hermitage Hotel in Nashville allows travelers to pick from a handful of pillow types to ensure the optimal level of comfort. The Standard International hosts a variety of unique events. For example, The Standard High Line created a Sleep-in Cinema night where guests got to camp outdoors on Halloween and watch iconic horror films while eating movie snacks and sipping wine.

Boutique hotels are getting even crazier. For example, the Solis Two Porsche Drive in Atlanta caters to its guests’ dogs. It offers in-room dog beds, a dedicated dinner menu, and a special happy hour just for canines. These dog-friendly amenities are great for travelers whose pets are part of the family.

Amazon and Marriott have partnered together to bring Alexa to hotel rooms. Alexa for Hospitality brings voice assistant technology to help guests’ checkout, request housekeeping, order room service and control smart room features, like adjusting blinds or changing the temperature. Guests will be able to access third-party apps to further make their hotel room feel like home.

Hotels are adding a slew of amenities to compete not with other hotels, but with Airbnb and pop-up hotels. What’s the best hotel you’ve been to recently?