In the days of Airbnb and couch surfing, reserving traditional hotel rooms has fallen by the wayside. However, 2016 travel trends show the emergence and growing popularity of smart hotels, a type of accommodation that focuses more on the needs of the customer than the glitz and glamour of a boutique lifestyle.
As the American workforce moves out of the office and into remote office spaces (or even homes), hotel companies are purchasing former office spaces and turning them into holiday lodging. Rather than honing in on a consistent design or recognizable branding strategy, smart hotels are taking the bare-bones approach and refocusing their efforts with the consumer in mind, keeping the environment simple and flashy-free.
Such hotels will also foster spaces for co-working or connecting with technology on various platforms. As we become more reliant on technology to function in our daily lives, vacation lodging hopes to meet this need by converting former working spaces into social hubs of connectivity. Affordability, sleek design and simplicity will be the building blocks of these new hotels, which will also provide the classic hotel element of privacy once your devices are shut down.
Current examples of such smart hotels include CityHub in Amsterdam, a hostel/hotel that offers the sociable experience of the former combined with the privacy of the latter, and Hotel Schani in Vienna.
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