Hotels and Vacation Homeowners: Reason to Frette?
Lara Dunston posed the question recently:
Are hotels going out of fashion?...as more and more travellers seem to be choosing to rent holidays apartments or villas, to stay in locandas, agriturismi, or farm-stays, or even in strangers' homes (you've heard of couchsurfing?).
It's an interesting one. Are they going away? No. But on our past two extended trips out of country, we sought out apartments or short-term rentals as a way to really sink into the culture - while also offering a way to dine-in. So there was a convenience (I eat so frequently, a kitchen is fairly important) with a heavy serving of cultural interest (much more fun to go to the alimentari or outdoor market and choose our ingredients alongside local residents of Sorrento or Rome, rather than dine at the same restaurants each evening of our stay). Not to mention how much we saved on dining and were able to spend on other things - or possibly save.
And I'll be honest, I still want that "lifestyle upgrade" when I travel. Where I sleep should be as nice as my home or better. No slumming for me, please.
To stand out from other beach places on the rental market, the couple says they spent more than $500,000 on upgrades and new furnishings, including Italian leather sofas, a new kitchen with a 50-bottle wine chiller and a Jacuzzi with iPod hookups. They also stocked the linen closet with Frette sheets and towels and the baths with scented salts and shampoo. "We wanted the same quality as a five-star hotel," says Mrs. Shera, an interior designer.
Obviously, this is largely due to the volatile housing market which has left many of those homes unsold and unoccupied. So if you pair these two disparate stories together, Lara's question and the Journal's insight into rental homes, I'd bet that hotels are losing out this summer in a major way. If I could stay at a pimped out Bel air manse with Frette linens and opulent surroundings like that of a hotel, you can bet I'm choosing to make my own bed in the morning.
So, the real issue is why, how and under what conditions you travel. A family may need a rental with room for 6. A couple may love the ease of a hotel. An individual may couch surf.
My question is: are you looking for a lifestyle upgrade when you travel?
Be sure to also weigh on on Lara's question. Are hotels going out of fashion?
I don't think hotels will go out of style for exactly the reason you cite, we all love the services (cleaning, concierge, etc.). However, there is a hybrid on the horizon. All of the large hotels here in San Francisco have started condo developments. Privately owned homes you can rent if you please with all the hotel amenities, even the doorman. Best of both worlds perhaps.
Posted by: TravelMuse | June 13, 2008 at 11:41 AM
I am not a fan of Hotels when i travel...I like renting apartments, or going to B&B because i love the possibility of having a Kitchen and the use of a Fridge...
I love to cook and the use of a Kitchen is on top of my list...
So when traveling in the US, i don't mind hotels, but outside of the country we try to avoid it...
Posted by: Yara | June 13, 2008 at 11:51 AM
Interesting. I don't think hotels will ever go out of style, because so many people like to be pampered when they travel. For me, it depends where I'm going. In Florence we stayed in an apartment, where we cooked, ate on the patio, and felt what it was like to really live in the city. But in Capri, we stayed in a hotel, where the bed was made everyday and the towels were fresh. It's a luxe city, so I guess we wanted that experience.
Posted by: The Lil Bee | June 13, 2008 at 12:30 PM
I really do want the lifestyle upgrade when we travel. The only thing that would keep me out of a hotel in any city would be the falling dollar. I just love the services that nice hotels provide and, when in a different city, I really want to check out their restaurant scene. We can eat in quite nicely in St. Louis, but how many times are you doing to get to eat at La Carbonara in Rome in a lifetime? However, if the dollar stays where it is for very long, we will most certainly have to consider our accomodations very carefully the next time we make a trip abroad.
Posted by: LucyinStLou | June 13, 2008 at 12:48 PM
Great question. I suppose hubby and I are varied depending on the trip. Sometimes we MUST glam it up and others it's all about pinching dimes and spending time. Ironically we're getting big on the "intown" overnight hotel stay to hide from the world...we're doing it this weekend @ Lumiere. So to that end, I don't think hotels will ever go out of style...but I do love when I have an abode w/ kitchen because you save so much.
Posted by: glamazini | June 13, 2008 at 03:36 PM
talk about great answers. it sounds like we're all feeling the same thing: never out of style... but sometimes out of step.
roshini, i love the in-town overnight use. interesting how we never 'vacay' in our own city!
Posted by: franki durbin | June 13, 2008 at 04:12 PM
Yes, I want an upgrade when I travel! Especially when it is just my husband and me, I like to have every luxury. That usually means staying in a hotel. If we have the son in tow and are with other families or our extended family, then staying in some sort of rental might make sense so that we can eat in and put the kiddos to bed. Even in these instances, I like my accommodations to be as nice and clean and luxe as possible!
Posted by: Ashley | June 13, 2008 at 07:03 PM
I couldn't agree more, Ashley. It's always a shame when we have to compromise quality simply for being a larger group. That is the main reason most of us roll our eyes when we hear 'family vacation' :)
Can't we all just rent a Villa on the Côte d'Azur? ;)
Posted by: franki durbin | June 13, 2008 at 08:42 PM
What great points!
But to be honest, I don't personally believe hotels are going out of style either - although I've definitely noticed as we roam around the world and talk to travellers and ask them where they're staying they are increasingly saying they've rented an apartment/villa, are staying at a charming B&B, or have checked into a little locanda above a Michelin-star restaurant, more so than ever before when a hotel was the norm and the staying elsewhere was a rarity.
And these people are not all American either. On our recent commissions in Cyprus, Crete, Turkey and Italy, the tourists we've mainly met have been British and continental Europeans, so it's not just a question of economics.
I agree with Tamara (Mrs Smith) of Mr and Mr and Mrs Smith-fame that people are generally becoming more imaginative travellers. We want something a bit different to the experience a hotel provides, even if it's luxury we want (after all, there are apartments and villas you can rent with maids, chefs and concierges), and we all generally want more interesting experiences. But I think this is a good thing and it will get the hotels working a bit harder to keep up and hold our interest and make us happy!
Posted by: lara_dunston | June 14, 2008 at 11:37 AM
many hotel groups [Kor aka Viceroy/Kelly Werstler] are building hotels along side "residences" that people purchase and then "rent" out when not using.
Kor's Viceroy Anguilla property is slated to open next year. I think it's their biggest property to use this set up. While at your residence...you have all access to luxury concierge - room service etc...but with the ownership principal attached.
and...I don't think they're having trouble selling any of their properties.
Posted by: richie | June 16, 2008 at 01:24 PM
Thanks for writing this.
Posted by: Lysa | October 22, 2008 at 03:24 AM