Special RepoRt : Millennials
reaching out , looking forward
Here is a roundup of what specific brands are doing to attract Millennials :
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide ’ s Aloft brand sponsored a spring music festival called Moogfest — specifically the festival ’ s New Media Art Exhibit — as part of an attempt to link the hipness of the Aloft brand to Millennials .
Courtyard by Marriott followed its 2008 reformatting of its lobbies with a US $ 2 million guestroom revamp — GenNext — that offers new carpet , organic headboards , soft tone-on-tone décor as well as new hubs for personal technology .
The Fontainebleau Miami Beach recently hosted a two-day IHeartRadio pool party to attract younger prospective guests .
Scandic recently launched a new brand especially for Millennials called HTL , which features central locations , quality rooms and local experiences at a value price in Stockholm with plans for units in Oslo , Helsinki and Copenhagen .
Marriott Hotels launched a “ personalization ” effort that collects personal data in exchange for enhanced services like mobile check-in and checkout through smartphones .
Carlson plans to open 60 of its new Radisson
Carlson ’ s Radisson Red guestroom , seen here in a rendering , comes complete with the ability for guests to project their own media onto the wall .
Red hotels worldwide by 2020 , a concept that will allow guests to personalize their rooms in terms of food and beverage choices , a 24-hour deli and even family photos displayed on the flatscreen TVs upon arrival .
Sir Francis Drake Hotel in San Francisco launched a “ Be a Kid Again ” promotion that offers nostalgic toys , games and snacks to spice up meetings and conferences for Millennials — especially high-tech entrepreneurs .
Thompson Hotels will launch a spinoff brand called Tommie next year that the company says will offer space-efficient “ crash pads ” and an emphasis on communal spaces , casual dining options and tablet-based check-in .
Vagabond Inn teamed up with the ridesharing service Lyft to provide transportation to guests to Southern California destinations with the first ride ( up to US $ 25 ) offered complimentary by the hotel .
Starwood ’ s W Hotels in New York now offers a social media wedding concierge service with live tweets during the event , setting up wedding blogs , creating gift registries online and even setting up a Pinterest scrapbook covering the big day and the honeymoon .
Millennials traveling
ƒ ƒ In 2013 U . S . Millennials spent an average of US $ 4,499 on travel , more than Generation X and Boomers . Only those age 69 and up spent as much on travel as Millennials . This is only expected to increase , as U . S . Millennials plan to spend US $ 5,386 on travel in in 2014 . ƒ ƒ Worldwide , Millennials are more likely to extend business trips with personal vacation days than their older peers — 62 % of 18- to 30-yearolds have done so , versus 51 % of 31- to 45-year-olds and 37 % of 46- to 65-year-olds . ƒ ƒ 59 % of U . S . Millennials stayed at independent properties in the past year — almost 20 % more than Boomers and double the percentage of people over age 69 .
Sources : MMGY “ 2014 Portrait of American Travelers ”; Expedia and Egencia “ Future of Travel ”
40 HOTELS September 2014 www . hotelsmag . com