There is a lot of discussion in the hotel community about the topics below:
· Modular design/construction
· Connected rooms
· Experiences, over stays
· Unbundling/rebundling of options
Modular design/construction. UK/EU hotel groups who build on brown field sites have focused on modular design and construction where rooms are fabricated off-site and brought on site on low-loaders and raised by cranes into position. The rooms include power, lighting, plumbing, and some furniture. The micro hotels like YOTEL initiated the concept and Premier Inn and Village Hotels have expanded it. A 250-room hotel can be constructed once foundations are down in only in 3 months. Hilton has picked up the concept for its new San Francisco Bay Area hotel: https://archpaper.com/2018/08/modular-construction-hilton/
Connected rooms, means high tech rooms with strong WiFi, big smart TVs, mobile locks, in-room controls for lighting/ventilation, and apps as virtual concierges. Millennial hotels like YOTEL and CitizenM led the way, but the tech has dropped in price so others have followed suit like Village Hotels: https://www.hotelmanagement.net/development/village-hotel-club-to-invest-ps480m-uk-growth https://www.trilyo.com/blog/the-top-10-high-tech-hotels-around-the-world/ Tech companies like SuitePad provide tablets that link to room controls to give a guest control over their own environment without needing to download a bespoke hotel app. Video demo here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/15pfiwetewyfvBJ7JpFVMZKbPBG-ymfYz/view?_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9e_Eg5eradxoiWpbfvZyKKQ1K8CEejCKp4Dp_NoDV1K7alhbm3Zn3K5ZiBuUyMLv6NXeC6g0FuMVizKsJM6Ywu5yyDIQ&_hsmi=74339487
Experiences over stays. Airbnb has led the way with its attempt to link guests to local communities, which also gives it an ancillary revenue stream: https://www.airbnb.co.uk/s/experiences. https://www.theguardian.com/business-to-business/2018/apr/11/airbnb-is-forcing-everyone-to-up-their-game-how-hotels-are-changing-tack Canopy by Hilton is its attempt to create a lifestyle brand based on preferences and needs, not demographics alone: https://www.hilton.com/en/canopy/
Unbundling/rebundling of options. Newer PMSes like MEWS and StaynTouch have been designed to extend the concept of room types to more of a space and asset management model. https://www.mewssystems.com/ Guests can pick a room and add extras to enhance their stay. This can include longer lets for business use with kitchenettes, meeting spaces, storage for bicycles, laptop hire, etc. The Student Hotel in Amsterdam isn’t just for students and you can book its rooms as co-working spaces and have the bed removed completely before you arrive: https://www.thestudenthotel.com/amsterdam-city-2/hotel/
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