The Living Room public space at The Study at Johns Hopkins furnished with leather seating and touches like oversized bookcases . Photo credit : Nate Smith
A guestroom at The Study at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore , which opened in February 2024 as Study Hotels ’ fourth hotel .
it ’ s reasonable to suggest that Study Hotels demonstrates that the concept works .
In late 2023 , The Study at Johns Hopkins , in Baltimore , Md ., opened , the fourth hotel in Study Hotels ’ portfolio , joining The Study at Yale , in New Haven , Conn .; The Study at University City , in Philadelphia ; and The Study at University of Chicago . So far , Study Hotels has planted itself in strong academic towns that are decidedly urban in nature , not yet penetrating college towns with larger campuses or ones known more for their sports and social aspects than for their scholarship .
A mixed-media installation by artist Christie DeNizio at The Study at Johns Hopkins , which features works by students and local artists . Photo credit : Nate Smith
Maybe that is the point . The idea for Study Hotels , which McGowan launched in 2008 off a successful career developing brands like W for Starwood , was based on a simple premise and an identifiable gap in the market : college towns , for the most part , didn ’ t have great hotels . It wasn ’ t a legion of feasibility studies or reams of market performance data that convinced McGowan , it was personal experience . Like most parents , when their kid comes of age , and it ’ s time to start considering colleges , dad or mom or mom with dad , load up the car and head out on the highway to check out schools . Beyond checking out the
student union , library and social scene , they must , too , check into a hotel . Some of the accommodations don ’ t oftentimes match the caliber of the institution .
“ We were traveling around , looking at colleges with my daughter , and staying in some pretty lousy hotels ,” McGowan recalled . “ I was trying to understand why these markets weren ’ t served with higher quality hotels , especially at an institution like Yale ,” which is where Study Hotels ended up planting its first flag , 16 years ago . ( For the record , his daughter ended up at Cornell .) Back then , McGowan thought to himself : “ There ’ s got to be a way to accommodate the needs of this institution ,” while also making it financially successful .
COLLEGE BOUND McGowan through Hospitality 3 acquired what was the former Colony Inn on Chapel Street , next to Yale ’ s Schools of Architecture and Design , gutted it , and took
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