Hotels go after Millennials

Moxy Hotels, Marriott International’s new hotel for Millennials, which just celebrated the opening of its New Orleans property, is a signpost to the wave of openings targeting these younger travelers in the next few years.

Every major hotel company has designed a new brand to appeal to these consumers in their 20s and early 30s whose purchasing power and desire to travel is expected to increase exponentially in the coming years.

In addition to Moxy, which opened its first property in Tempe, Ariz., in March, Marriott introduced AC Hotels in 2014. Last year, Hyatt unveiled Hyatt Centric. Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group debuted Radisson Red in Brussels in April. Hilton Worldwide opened its first Canopy in Reykjavik this month and will introduce Tru early next year.

They join more established brands such as InterContinental Hotel Group’s Hotel Indigo and Starwood Hotels and Resorts’ Aloft, which already skewed younger and continue to evolve for Millennial tastes.

Smaller chains such as Virgin Hotels and Sixty Hotels are also focusing more on design, technology and experiences— the qualities hoteliers say Millennial travelers want.

“Millennials are less interested in a cookie-cutter experience and in fact want to discover something new, take in the city, the food, the local scene,” says Vicki Poulos, global brand director for Moxy Hotels. “Increasingly we see the blurring of lines between work and play.”

Millennials, who were born from 1980 to the mid-2000s, are the largest generation in the USA, representing one-third of the U.S. population, according to the White House’s Council of Economic Advisers.

They are already starting to travel more. In the first year of Virgin Hotels’ Chicago, 34% of its clientele was in the Millennial age bracket, says Virgin Hotels CEO Raul Leal.

“They’re looking for the same thing everyone is: comfort, convenience, value and definitely a place they can meet like-minded people,” he says.

Value is still key for Millennials, many of whom have yet to reach their income potential, As a result, guestroom minibars at the Virgin Chicago don’t carry the usually marked-up price tags. Peanut M&Ms are $1.50, Twinkies are $2, a Coca-Cola is $1, and wine is $16.

Hyatt Centric, which debuted in Chicago last year, also offers an array of amenities that executives believe will appeal to Millennials or older travelers who have similar tastes.

“Millennial-minded guests don’t live in a one-size-fits-all-world,” says Jonathan Frolich, vice president of brand marketing for Hyatt.

Room amenities in U.S. hotels include DryBar Buttercup salon-quality hair dryers, Keurig in-room coffee brewing systems, BeKind bath products and JBL speakers. Hyatt Centric also has an exclusive program with Grubhub, allowing guests to order food from the delivery service. Hyatt employees have curated the menus, which include Peruvian-Japanese fusion restaurant SuViche in Miami and Honduran cuisine from Honduras Kitchen in Long Beach.

“We’re trying things we’ve never done before,” Frolich says.

Although Hilton executives won’t say that Canopy is a Millennial brand, they do say that it appeals to a Millennial mind-set.

Canopy hotels have a lobby called “Canopy Central," with a casual bar/café. An artisanal breakfast and Wi-Fi are included in the rate. Guests get a welcome gift from the neighborhood and evening tastings featuring local treats such as microbrews and local wines. Each hotel will have a “transfer lounge” where guests can refresh before or after check-in/check-out.

Canopy properties strive to offer “a true feel for the surrounding neighborhood,” says Gary Steffen, global head of Canopy.

Radisson Red opened its first hotel in Brussels in April and has 13 more in the works, including a Minneapolis location scheduled to open by the end of 2016.

“When we designed the brand, we spent a lot of time researching and understanding Millennial consumers and what their likes are,” says Richard Flores, vice president of branding for Radisson and Radisson Red at Carlson. “Millennials are looking for a new experience, a sense of discovery. ... They want to do things at their own pace.”

Their own pace means using their mobile phones as room keys, which Radisson Red and many other brands are adopting.

Starwood’s Aloft, which was one of the first brands to try keyless entry, has also introduced the Botlr, a robotic butler; TiGi (“text it, get it”), an emoji-only room service menu; and RoomCast Powered by Chromecast, which allows guests to stream content from their smart devices to their guestroom televisions. These features are being piloted at various Aloft properties.

“We also refresh our lobbies quarterly,” says Brian McGuinness, global brand leader for Aloft and other Starwood brands.

Hotel Indigo, by IHG, has been around for 12 years. It was one of the first boutique brands to be introduced by a major hotel giant. IHG has since bought another boutique hotel brand, Kimpton Hotels and Restaurants.

But Hotel Indigo continues to evolve.

This summer, the brand has partnered with Uber, the ride-hailing company, to play host to concerts at Hotel Indigo’s new Lower East Side New York rooftop restaurant, Mr. Purple.

Jason Moskal, vice president of lifestyle brands for IHG says the partnership with Uber made sense because the sharing economy is so popular with younger travelers. He also says that each Hotel Indigo property tries to feel like a hanging out venue vs. a hotel.

“It’s not people coming to New York City. It’s people coming to the Lower East Side neighborhood and really looking for that Lower East Side experience,” he says.

A local experience is what Moxy is going after as well, and what Marriott thinks young guests seek.

“We wanted to create moments throughout the space that would spark conversation and guests would want to share with friends over social media,” says Christine Miller, a designer at Stonehill and Taylor at the Moxy New Orleans, mentioning touches like a hanging bird cage chair and and a pillow emblazoned with "I woke up like this."