Southern California is high on the travel and tourism industry's radar for the variety of nearby amusement parks, year-round ideal climate, pristine beaches, as well as being a wellness-focused spa mecca. The area attracts millions of leisure travelers each year to experience the luxury and boutique shopping and the award-winning dining options in its relaxed and welcoming atmosphere. Business travelers also prominently flock to San Diego throughout the year from all over the world due to the variety of conference venues, predictable climate and abundance of hotel accommodation options. READ MORE

Creating an unforgettable guest experience involves much more than simply good interior design or a striking logo, particularly in today's competitive and product-flooded hotel industry. Guest columnist David Ashen, principal and founder of dash design, shares the "why and how" behind weaving brand and culture together successfully. Doing so not only helps a hotel brand differentiate and compete, it also creates a meaningful stay for hotel guests that extends way beyond check-out. READ MORE

In the past decade, the United States has experienced a major cultural and economic shift as downtowns become the hub of a city's economic activity and culture once again. This trend is having major implications for how people work, eat, and play, and most importantly for our industry: how they travel. As more travelers seek the uniqueness of a city by visiting their urban core, restaurants, attractions, parks, and hotels are benefiting from this return to a destination's roots. READ MORE

As a Detroit-based designer, I have always had a strong appreciation for historic buildings and the way they are able to narrate the past through architecture. Adaptive reuse projects, which literally reuse an old site or building for a contemporary purpose other than what it was originally built or designed for, have led to the resurrection of some of my city's most iconic landmarks. My firm has had a hand in many of those projects, and my experience working on them has only enhanced my affection for and understanding of the power and potential of adaptive reuse. READ MORE

As a design firm, 5G is sought by our clients to evoke ideas that surprise and inspire the public with innovation, energy and quality - opening eyes to things not seen before. Our roots are well positioned in history to achieve these goals every day for clients. Our studio sits in a 110-year-old exposed brick building with original wood floors, century old windows with views to the city on the East, and skies on the West. There is something truly refreshing about the space. As we design and create new spaces, the nostalgia and history of our corporate headquarters are, in a sense, always anew. READ MORE

The hospitality industry is constantly reinventing itself to stay on trend with not only what competitors are doing, but also what is expected and desired from consumers. That said, rebranding a hotel is not something new, it is likely something many of us have been part of more than once and will continue to cycle through in our careers. READ MORE

The wellness experience in hotel amenity spaces can and should be developed to create a single total integrated health experience consisting of fitness cross-training, relaxation, nutrition education, entertainment, and spa. This experience should not only exercise and relax the entire body and mind, but it should also be easy to organize, schedule and partake in. Often however, these amenities, when they exist, are not well thought-out, are self-service and are poorly integrated into the guest experience. The wellness experience represents a unique opportunity to connect with the patron. When it is manifest in an afterthought, even an aesthetically well-designed one, it is likely a missed opportunity. Done properly the synergistic wellness experience generates revenue and changes the way patrons think of hotels and resorts. READ MORE

Adaptive reuse hotel projects have been increasingly popular the last few years due to growing competition for quality locations and with prime urban hotel development sites at a premium. But today, its not just hotel owners and developers proposing historic buildings as revenue generators, it's also customer demand, as consumers are hooked on the concept of unique travel experiences. This increase in interest from the consumers, Millennials in particular, is redefiniing and shaping the industry's approach to design, requiring us to be even more transparent about the historic adaptation process. Millennials don't just want to see a beautiful atrium and be told it's historic. They want to know who originally built it and why, what is it made out of; they want the story. READ MORE

We are introduced to the concept of sharing in childhood, and we are taught to incorporate this into our daily lives both personally and professionally. Sharing is not a new notion, but over the last few years the simple idea of sharing has become a major international economic trend that is having an impact on how hotels are designed and run. READ MORE

An international hospitality practice, specializing in emerging markets offers creative opportunities, unique challenges, and financial rewards. The pursuit and execution of projects in emerging areas carries with it certain risks that should be weighed before making the commitment to expand into these markets. The hospitality market has entered an interesting phase of its evolution, with personalization being a rising priority. Whether a luxury brand or a mid-market brand, each touch point of the guest experience is expected to offer some level of personalization. From check-in, room selection, choice of bedding, meals, and activities-everything is expected to be customized, personal, and reflective of the local culture and traditions READ MORE

What makes hotel design unique? Is it grand staircases, spectacular chandeliers, awe-inspiring art collection? Today, it seems that hotels try to outdo each other by investing in distinctive design features. Why has there been this noticeable shift brand thinking? Some might say investing in design for design sake, but is this the case? Is it worth the time, effort and money? Brand Identity and lifestyle brands were an important genesis for differentiation in the hospitality segment, however, this has evolved to be a competition of sorts with many vying for the coveted spot of the being the must see property in the market. This in turn, helps generate "the buzz", the best and most glowing reviews, which in turn hopefully lead to greater occupancy. READ MORE

For those who travel as much as I do, you have probably lived "Groundhog Day" more than once when you wake up in a hotel room and experience a moment of panic. The bed, desk and TV screen are placed in the same spots of the room as that of the last hotel you were in. Familiar bed covering patterning. Same upholstered chair. Same lamps. The art on the wall is generic for Anywhere USA as are the rest of the finishes throughout the room. "Where am I and which city am I in?" READ MORE

They're in their 20s, traveling for business and they're not choosing a hotel based on loyalty points. The hotel industry is banking on this new group of travelers to boost its economic growth well into the future. Hotels are repackaging the brand experience to appeal to this new customer and they're spending tremendous resources to get it right. This new demographic is not a uniform, homogenous group and they don't necessarily have loyalty to any brand. People years ago wanted to stay at a Marriott so they could build up their points, but that doesn't drive this generation. They don't fit into a box or stereotype. This is the young twenty-something coming into the business world and it's becoming increasingly important to tailor brands to appeal to this new segment. READ MORE

The first three words in real estate are location, location, location. A hotel property inevitably prospers based on its location to nearby elements and attractions. A major city center, national park, shopping outlet, theme park, or convention center can be counted upon to fill a lot of room nights and buoy occupancy. In a vacuum, you need nothing more than a great location. Of course, the real world is different. There is competition galore, especially in the best locations. How do you ensure that you have captured your fair share of the market? It's all about your amenity mix. READ MORE

Brand standards are adjusting as hotel executives recognize that staying true to the brand does not require a strict, cookie cutter approach. Architects have long championed the value of a site-specific design approach, believing that a hotel should take its cues from elements of the surrounding architecture to create a modern yet sensitive response, and that the design for a hotel should also acknowledge the local climate, flora, fauna, and terrain. No one is suggesting that brand standards be chucked out the window -- just that there are a variety of ways to appropriately deliver the experience a guest expects from a brand and from a destination. READ MORE

The Merriam Webster Dictionary defines the word "design" to mean many things, one of which says…"to plan and make (something) for a specific use or purpose." In there lies the first task of a good hotel designer….Understand the use, purpose, desire, and interest of your guest(s). The hotel designer has to envision how something will look, how it will function and what experiences a guest will have from the moment they pull up or walk in to the property, through every inch they wander. READ MORE