Business management & development That’s shadowed by a range of new features, from
barroom games to study rooms to fitness centres. At their most ambitious, hotel executives hope that their airport hotels can transcend their reputation for utilitarianism, instead creating properties that are places to enjoy – rather than simply silos to meet or sleep before heading back to the terminal.
Flying high
Airport hotels are soaring. That’s obvious enough if you examine the numbers, with Heathrow alone enjoying a pipeline of more than 2,000 rooms. It’s a similar story across the Atlantic: work by CBRE has found that RevPAR at airport hotels in the US increased by 4.4% in May 2024. This sector growth is equally reflected at the brand level, with Hilton and Radisson just two of the companies to announce ambitious airport hotel plans. A third brand enjoying a similar trajectory is Atwell Suites. An upper-midscale chain, this IHG imprint has a pipeline of some 40 airport properties – alongside the three already open.
How to explain this growth? For Karen Gilbride,
the answer partly lies in what’s always made these properties attractive. “Airport hotels have served – and will always serve – a critical need in our industry and for travellers in every corner of the world,” says Gilbride, a VP for several IHG brands, including Atwell Suites. “Today’s travellers want reliability and consistency, but also spaces and amenities that cater to their flexible work schedules and styles. Airport hotels fill gaps as convenient, go-to destinations for quick meetings or get-togethers, especially for travellers quickly passing through one place on their way to another.” Fair enough: with IATA reporting that more than 70%
of flyers value proximity to the airport when choosing their departure point, it makes sense that many plump for nearby hotels. Yet if early morning check-ins explain much of the airport hotel’s appeal, Gilbride’s reference to “spaces and amenities” hint at a change of strategy. For where these places were once holding pens for family getaways, or else mere conference centres with bedrooms attached, places like the TWA Hotel clearly show much greater ambition. As so often in the hospitality space, moreover, customers themselves are pushing these changes along, with polls as far back as 2016 showing that guests valued ‘luxury’ and ‘innovation’ when booking a night at the airport. Whatever the cause, at any rate, it’s obvious that consumer demand is transforming what airport hotels involve. Apart from the TWA’s runway-side pool, that’s apparent enough in places like the Crowne Plaza Changi Airport. Voted Skytrax’s best airport hotel on Earth in 2023, this Singapore hotel has everything from fine Italian dining to a landscaped swimming pool. And while Atwell Suites aren’t in quite the same league, Gilbride nonetheless emphasises that her properties offer a “design-led alternative” to dreary airport stereotypes, with fitness studios and spa-like bathrooms coming as standard.
Hotel Management International /
www.hmi-online.com
Hosting in Austin At first glance, Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is not the place you’d expect to enjoy a first-class hotel experience. Flanked by the highways and stripmalls of the Texan capital, this is a place that exudes Americana in all its mundaneness. But flanked by a data centre on one side, and a Denny’s on the other, is the Atwell Suites Austin Airport – and if you step through the glass-fronted doors, everything changes. Throwing off the industrial sameness of most airport hotels, this is a property with real character. Consider the public spaces, all trendy carpets and smart wooden chairs, or else the garden with its oblong swimming pool. It’s a similar story in the 85 guest rooms, with suites boasting handsome abstract paintings and off-beat light fixtures. Beyond the headline impression, meanwhile, it’s
plain that the Atwell Suites Austin Airport typifies a new kind of airport hotel in other ways. When it comes to dining, for instance, Gilbride highlights the grab- and-go options and bean-to-cup coffee – as well as the usual complimentary breakfasts. For guests wanting to eat in private, each suite also comes with a fridge, microwave and sink. The Atwell’s bar is different too: apart from the wine, and the ready-to-drink cocktails, there are also puzzles and ‘conversation starter
Above: The facade of airport hotels is changing.
Below: Communal spaces are bringing a more social aspect to travel taverns.
Opposite: Desks are a common fi xture in airport hotels due to those travelling for work.
2,000+
The current room pipeline for Heathrow Airport.
geraldeve.com
13
Atwell Suites
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53
