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Hotels tap the sick-of-working-from-home crowd

Staycations, workcations, schoolcations, work-from-hotel offers: Call them what you will, pandemic-driven remote working and learning have given rise to a new niche: weary telecommuters seeking a change of scenery after months of being cooped up at home.

Offers range from day use to month-long idylls, with perks like food and beverage credits, kids’ homework helpers and discounts on spa treatments to sweeten the deal. Some hotels are targeting small meetings with day-use rooms set up for video calls. The intended net outcome, of course, is to drive traffic to properties and create incidental revenue for restaurants, golf courses and spas.

The Westin Nashville is courting the daytime drop-in worker or group with two offers: A US$199-per-day room rate that include use of a guestroom, access to the hotel’s fitness center and pool, 10% off spa services and a free happy hour appetizer at one of the hotel’s restaurants. Groups can book the new Zoom Room, a dedicated meeting space already equipped for Zoom calls that holds up to 15 participants, with no F&B minimum.

Lightstone offers day rates at its three Moxy hotels in New York City. The guestrooms at these three hotels are equipped with flexible furniture, such as a folding desk and chair, and a modular side table/desk that a guest can use to work in bed or seated in an armchair.

“We recognized a long time ago that to accommodate today’s traveler, our hotels needed to be more than just a place to rest your head,” said Mitchell Hochberg, president of Lightstone. “So we’ve always designed with an eye towards flexibility. As a result, there’s very little we’ve had to change to accommodate the trend in working from hotels.”

The next level of work-from-hotel, the workcation, is growing more popular as the pandemic lingers. The Monarch Beach Resort in Dana Point, California, is promoting a two-fer Zoom into Zen Package that combines overnight accommodations and an extra room as a private office. The price includes high-speed WiFi, an in-room printer or scanner, a business concierge and a US$100 resort credit that can be applied toward cabana rentals and dining.

Westin's Zoom Room
Westin’s Zoom Room

The Work from Hyatt package, which starts at US$139 a night for stays of a week or longer, provides work space options, housekeeping and high-speed WiFi; discounted or complimentary laundry is part of the deal as well. In addition, individual hotels participating in the program include location-specific perks such as a round of golf or a spa treatment at the Park Hyatt Aviara in San Diego, or complimentary s’mores kits at the Hyatt Regency Clearwater in Florida.

“We remain committed to listening to our guests,” said Asad Ahmed, Hyatt’s senior vice president of commercial services America, “and we have learned that we need to go beyond safe and clean, and reimagine the hotel experience with a focus on holistic wellbeing.”

Ahmed said the program grew out of heavy demand this past summer for Hyatt’s Destination Residences. The company saw an opening for guests seeking more than a weekend escape — and the hunch paid off. “We have seen tremendous success and interest so far,” he notes, adding that the program is being rolled out beyond the initial 25 properties. Most of the bookings have come from World of Hyatt members.

Hyatt’s program has a seven-day minimum, while Palmaia—The House Of Aia, a new vegan resort on Mexico’s Riviera Maya, ups the ante with a month-long Beachfront Wellness Work-Away. Travelers who book the US$7,500 package get ocean-facing suites, child care, daily laundry, onsite tech support and private meditation sessions with a personal growth guide.

A month “was the minimum we needed to be able to offer guests a compelling price point,” said Alex Ferri, founder and CEO.

The St. Regis Punta Mita in Mexico also has seen strong demand for long-stay bookings, particularly on two- and three-bedroom suites and villas. A Stay Longer and Save package offers guests up to 30% savings for visits of five nights or more.

Accommodating kids who are learning remotely is another popular hook. Montage Hotels & Resorts created Montage Academy, offered at several resorts, to keep youngsters busy with an all-day monitored study hall, virtual tutors, healthy snacks and lunch, and afternoon elective activities ranging from yoga to hiking, art, cooking, woodshop and conservation. A “learning concierge” manages the room and activities. Montage charges US$175 for a full day or US$725 for a full school week.

Select Kimpton hotels recently expanded their Work from Hotel packages to provide a kids’ component. “With work and school continuing to remain remote for the remainder of the year, we’re seeing family vacations increasingly extend into the fall,” said Kathleen Reindenbach, chief commercial officer.

The hotels named a property-level “chief virtual learning officer” to manage the program. Guests normally research and book their own work-from-hotel sessions. “However, we do have some corporate customers marketing the offer to their workforce,” Ahmed said.

Appealing to untethered workers and families is not likely to go away with the pandemic, either. Amanda Lesse, director of sales and marketing for Amara Resort and Spa in Sedona, Arizona, has aimed the resort’s Work from Here, Learn from Here program at guests within an eight-hour drive of the resort.

But the next potential market she’s mining is further afield: Fortune 100 and 500 companies that have encouraged employees to work remotely long-term. “We’re looking at a lot of technology companies that are not going back to their offices,” she said.

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