UK introduces movable, recyclable hotel concept

by Abha Malpani on

There seem to be a variety of recycled hotels around the world. New Zealand has a 1950’s Bristol Fighter that has been converted into a motel; The Hague has marine lifeboats converted into floating hotels, and Stavoren (also Netherlands) has 15,000 liter wine-vats converted into hotel rooms.

But the latest in the recycled hotels genre is a recyclable one that can move locations! Budget hotel operator Travelodge has come up with this cheap, quick to construct, and green accommodation solution for large scale festivals and events where they rent out some crates from China and put together a temporary, recyclable hotel in 12-weeks. The pre-built, container-like crates are stacked together and bolted to form an 8-floor, 120-room hotel structure, and come in modules with bathrooms installed; the rest of the furnishings will be added later.

It probably doesn’t get more inventively green, but I’d have safety concerns.

What will they come up with next? Recyclable houses? Cars? Planes?

Best hotel gyms in the US

by Martha Edwards on

Being a bit of a healthy living nut, I’m always a little bit excited by nice hotel gyms. Many hotels out there buy a used treadmill and a couple sets of mismatched weights and call it a gym, but a nice hotel will actually make the effort to replicate your gym at home. I’ve found that Fairmont Hotels (at least the Canadian ones) tend to have nice gyms, but they come with a pretty hefty price tag unfortunately.

Athletic Minded Traveler recently came out with a list of the top hotel gyms in the US. Here’s what made the cut:

  1. Houstonian in Houston)
  2. Renaissance ClubSport in Walnut Creek, CA
  3. Park Hyatt at the Bellevue in Philadelphia
  4. Four Seasons in San Francisco
  5. Embassy Suites Lakefront in Chicago
  6. Hyatt Regency La Jolla at Aventine in La Jolla, CA
  7. Westin Atlanta Perimeter North in Atlanta
  8. Grand Hotel in Minneapolis
  9. Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, CO
  10. Venetian in Las Vegas

Want to know why they made the list? Click here for the full article.

One for the Road: Hotel – An American History

by Kelly Amabile on

A copy of this book, paired with some room reservations at a classic American hotel, might be a nice holiday gift for the history buff in your life: Hotel – An American History is a volume of stories and illustrations that explores how the hotel came to be in this country. The book tracks the invention of hotels in America, as inns and taverns gave way to the creation of majestic architectural masterpieces suited with grand ballrooms and private bed chambers. This review tells more:

Once upon a time, hotels were simply way-stations where weary travelers could stop to rest along a journey that could take many days. But over the centuries, hotels evolved into the symbols of American capitalism and of urban life. The biggest and best of them provided glamour, sophistication, elegance, and excitement, and A. K. Sandoval-Strausz has now given them the recognition they deserve. Beautifully illustrated and engagingly written, Hotel will reward both the specialist and the general reader.-Kenneth T. Jackson, Columbia University

Topics explored include: What it was like to sleep, eat, and socialize at a hotel in the mid-1800s; How hotelkeepers dealt with the illicit activities of adulterers, thieves, and violent guests; The stories behind America’s greatest hotels, including the Waldorf-Astoria, the Plaza, the Willard, the Blackstone, and the Fairmont; and how the development of steamboats and locomotives helped create a nationwide network of hotels.

Exposed in a Travelpod: The world’s first mobile hotel room

by Kelly Amabile on

Writing about normal rooms reminded me of another possible (albeit odd) sleeping alternative to traditional hotels. I first learned about the Travelpod from this Age article by Benji Laynado: For those too posh to pitch recounts Benji’s experience sleeping in one of Travelodge’s mobile hotel rooms — a transparent glass structure with clear polycarbonate walls, carpeting, AC, double bed and other furniture, but no shower. This is the second generation Travelpod, a revised version of the original room that was trialed in 2006, with added design features.

For about $65 bucks a night, the mobile hotel room can be transported from one of Britain’s Travelodge hotels to any destination that allows permission for the room to be placed there. Benji chose a field for his out-of-the-box-while-in-a-box travel experience, and had a good night’s rest in what he calls “the top of the camping chain.” Interesting concept, but confusing, as Benji notes: “I came here to get outdoors, yet everything around me is trying to convince me indoors is great, too.”

The book Sex in a Tent reviews love-making tips for locations other than a typical tent — canoe, beach, sturdy tree — but what about the Travelpod? Would hooking-up in one of these count as an outdoor sexual experience if the structure was simply plopped down in a rural location? Something unimportant to ponder, eh? And how come I can’t find anything about similar structures in the US? Has any American hotel chain experimented with transportable hotel rooms yet? The whole thing seems quite silly to me, but still fascinating to follow these outlandish travel trends.

Jail Hotels: bunking like an inmate

by Abha Malpani on


Call me weird, but there is something sickly exciting about living in a hotel that used to be a jail. I prefer hostels, bed and breakfast inns and motels to hotels — with a special dislike towards 5-star luxury — but should I have the opportunity to stay at the new Boston jail hotel, I’d take it.

Smartly called “Liberty Hotel”, the once notorious Charles Street Jail celled Boston Mayor James Michael Curley and Frank Abagnale Jr., the con artist played by Leonardo DiCaprio in the movie “Catch Me If You Can.” After a $150 million refurbishment, it is now a 4-star hotel that seems to have succeeded in making something once squalid into something luxurious. Opened only in August, the likes of Meg Ryan and Mick Jagger have already been guests.

Less luxurious and more prison-like is the “Jail Hotel” in Switzerland, and the Liepaja prison in Latvia that takes your ‘lock-up’ experience to different heights. At the Liepaja, you are photographed and given a prison passport; you are given a medical test, a ‘do’s and don’ts’ list, and you have to make your own bed to strict army codes; a gun shot is fired if they see you smirking!

Any takers?

[Via ABC News]

Photo: Travelblog.org — Downpour30, Justin and Lauren