InterContinental Hotels Group launches EVEN, a wellness-focused hotel brand

by McLean Robbins on
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) today announced the US launch of EVEN™ Hotels, its new, wellness-focused hotel brand.

What is a “wellness hotel”?
Over a span of 18 months, IHG closely analyzed emerging trends, conducted studies and talked to over 4,000 customers. The research showed a demand shift to a holistic wellness travel experience, and confirmed an unmet need among customers – staying healthy while they travel.

Keep in mind, these won’t be destination spas or luxury resorts. The operating model for EVEN Hotels will be similar to limited service hotels.


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What will guests find?
Guest rooms will be designed for in-room workouts with multi-functional room amenities (e.g. coat rack that doubles as pull-up bars); a best-in-class gym with equipment and group exercise activities; a “Wellness Wall” resource for fitness tips, walking distances, and equipment rentals; and personalized guest services offering advice on fitness options.

Rooms will feature tech amenities such as high speed Wi-Fi, multimedia ports, easy access to outlets, and ample desk space. Additionally, there will be social areas in the bar and lobby. Rooms will also feature green and allergy-friendly amenities, including: hypoallergenic linens, powerful showerheads, natural lighting, LED dimmers, and antibacterial wipes.
Nutritionally designed menus will offer a particular focus on natural, fresh, fit, and energizing meals. In an open-air café and bar, guests can enjoy complimentary coffee, mini-smoothies, and flavored, filtered water with glass bottles available to fill up and take back to their rooms.

The company is so confident in the brand that they have planned an aggressive $150 million growth plan over the next three years and expects to sign contracts for 100 EVEN Hotels within the next five years.

Look for the first locations to be announced soon and the first hotel to open in early 2013.

Gallery: Hotel Tomo, San Francisco’s anime hotel

by Libby Zay on

Inexpensive hotels are hard to come by in San Francisco. Especially properties that are also convenient to the city’s major attractions and have easy access to public transportation. Add to the checklist the desire to stay somewhere that is not a complete dive and the options become slim to none.

At least that’s what I thought before stumbling upon Hotel Tomo, a Joie de Vivre property with a Japanese pop culture theme. The hotel website promised unique murals in each room, a quirky lobby with arcade-style games, and an on-site restaurant that has been serving Japanese cuisine for over 30 years. There was even an option to stay in the “Player’s Suite,” a party room with a circular bed and an 8-foot LCD screen for playing video games and belting out karaoke. It seemed too quirky to pass up.

I definitely didn’t know what to expect. Would I be bombarded with manga and have to endure mingling with pigtailed girls decked out in Hello Kitty accessories in the lobby? After making my reservations, I feared the hotel might end up being too over the top. But once I checked in and took a peek around, my anime anxiety subsided. In reality, Joie de Vivre took an outdated hotel and added subtle touches to give it some character. The communal spaces were painted in fun colors, while the comfortable rooms were furnished with clean lines and tastefully decorated. Despite the pictures on the hotel website, there were no graphic novels or action figures on the bedside table (I suppose you have to bring those yourself). I did, however, see some guests decked out as video game characters on their way to a convention while passing through the lobby.

Would I stay at Hotel Tomo again? For sure. Will I recommend it to others? Only those who will enjoy on-site parking, free Internet, a Keurig coffeemaker, friendly staff, and a fun atmosphere. Click through the gallery below to see more images of the hotel.

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Video: Diving for pearls in Dubai

by Libby Zay on

Throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, the world’s finest pearls were found in the waters of the Arabian gulf. Long story short, the industry was the only that thrived in the region until oil was discovered–but the tradition is not forgotten. Starting in March, travelers to the United Arab Emirates can take part in a traditional pearl diving experience with Dubai’s Jumeirah Group. Participants will dress in traditional clothes and board a dhow, a traditional sailing vessel with a long hull design and a mast with a lateen sail. Once out in the water, guests will dive for oysters. Apparently, if guests snag an actual pearl they will be able to keep them as a souvenir of the trip. Part of the excursion will also include a typical meal of Emirati fish and rice. Watch the video above to get a feel for the entire process.

The excursion is open to anyone interested in learning more about the ancient pearling traditions (in other words, not just Jumeirah hotel guests) and will cost about 700 UAE dirhams, which is about $190. Reservations can be made through Jumeirah’s Pavillion Dive Cener.

I hate you, hotel advertising TV channel

by Mike Barish on

I hate you, hotel advertising television channel. I hate that you’re the default channel every time I turn on the TV in my room. I hate it even more when you’re already on when I enter my room. Don’t you understand that if I hear noises in my hotel room when I enter, I’m going to think that there’s someone inside waiting to murder me and do odd things to my body? I hate that you advertise movies that I can purchase but that I wouldn’t watch if the hotel manager offered to pay me (I’m looking at you, 17 Again). I hate you for making it so difficult to navigate away from you and to other channels that may actually entertain me. I hate you so much.I hate that you default to a volume that drowns out jet engines. I hate that you make me find the strange menu buttons on the remote to navigate away from you. Don’t make me handle the remote anymore than I need to. It’s covered in bodily fluids!

I hate that you have spawned other in-house hotel television channels. Now there are hotel movie channels, hotel amenities channels (I do not want to see people with dead-behind-the-eyes expressions enjoying your spa), hotel restaurant channels (fact: bulk shrimp do not look appetizing on hotel televisions) and local attraction channels. Why are you pressuring me to do so many things? This is my vacation! This is my business trip! I don’t want to be bombarded by your nonsense when I’m in my room. I’m here to relax.

You know what I do want to watch in my room? The same garbage that I watch at home. Give me my basic cable channels. Give me a TV that works and displays high definition programming so that I can see rednecks running pawn shops and dudes mining for gold in Alaska in all their glory. I’m away from my DVR and need to stay caught up on my stories.

I don’t want to buy a movie. I don’t want to watch Carrot Top give me a tour of the Luxor (seriously, he haunted my dreams more than that asinine slanted ceiling did). I just want to see some sports highlights and Ron Swanson make dry-witted jokes about meat.

I hate you, hotel advertising channel. I hate you so much.

New Amsterdam hotel opens in former music conservatorium

by McLean Robbins on
One of our favorite spaces for hotels? Old buildings. News broke last week that Washington DC’s former Post Office Building will become a new Trump Hotel, and today we bring you Amsterdam‘s premier music conservatorium, recently re-launched as the aptly-named Conservatorium Hotel Amsterdam, Design Hotels™ newest member property.

The hotel mixes old and new in a layering of of classic and contemporary, with new additions such as a glass-covered atrium and exposed beams.

The property, which is part of the new luxury hotel collection The Set, pays tribute to the Amsterdam Conservatorium’s legacy by playing soothing classical music selections throughout the hotel. Whimsical names such as the “Tunes Restaurant” pay homage to the building’s musical past.

The hotel’s 129 rooms and suites provide a respite for the weary while an Akasha Holistic Wellbeing Center serves as a spa.

Check out the gallery, below:

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