Hotel rooms in my opinion fall into two categories, hotels rooms for business travellers and those for leisure travellers and they absolutely should have very little in common.

In all major hotels around  the world, guest rooms present the travelers with basically the same designs, same amenities and same layouts. With few changes here and there, a desk here, no desk there, they are practically identical.

Having been in the design of hotel and resorts over the years, I see a lot of competition and every hotel trying to outsmart the other by introducing gadgets such as branded bathroom amenities, choice of pillows, linen ..etc.  But the basic hotel design remains still the same.

I think the guest rooms have been perfected for the business traveler and provide all the required amenities and facilities needed by a business person on the move.

But when it comes to leisure travelers, hotels need to take their inspirations from resorts and go a step further to offer the right place to stay for the leisure traveler.

Today’s younger generation is growing to be a new breed of travelers. These travelers are smart, they are  looking for cultural experiences, for uniqueness and for style. All this has also to come at good value. They research their destinations well and expect to experience the local culture and come back home enriched with memories of each place.

The following design criteria should drive all new leisure hotels guestroom design;

-The room layout should be different from your ordinary basic bedroom,

-The local culture in all aspects must be instilled in every details of the guest room design, its  furniture and accessories,

-Technologies have to embedded in walls, floors, ceiling, windows…ect., It is no longer the case of providing a telephone and an internet connection. The room has to be interactive.

-Social and environmental responsibilities have to be evident throughout the guest rooms design and amenities.

-Through  technologies guest rooms have to offer the options of customisation and for make the place more personal,

-Bathrooms need a serious re-design approach. Toilet should definitely be separate from the bathroom for multitude of reasons, the basic one being a healthier environment