Accor Hotels Unveils Room of the Future for its Novotel Network

• 
  SAVE
• 
  SHARE
• 
  TEXT SIZE
• 
  PRINT
• 
  COMMENT
• 
  PDF

. November 18, 2011

November 17, 2011 - Last September, Denis Hennequin announced Accor's new strategic objective to become the global benchmark in hotels and revolutionize the customer experience. In line with this commitment to innovation, Novotel is offering a new type of room that makes a clean break with traditional hotel thinking by redefining the use of space and adding cutting edge technologies and amenities.

“We wanted to reinvent the hotel room experience by harmoniously melding design and new digital technologies,” explains Gregoire Champetier Global Chief Marketing Officer. “It's crucial to take our customers' changing habits and expectations into account. In particular, this means re-thinking our rooms in digital terms."

Guests can try out this revolutionary, yet perfectly realistic experience in the pilot room for the next three months. All of the equipment is fully functional and could be deployed throughout the Novotel network in the near future.

Microsoft was at the center of the room's design, notably with the integration of the Xbox 360 console and its revolutionary Kinect sensor, which uses body gesture and voice recognition to control games and entertainment. This partnership between Novotel and Microsoft is the logical next step in a relationship that began four years ago when Novotel started offering Xbox 360 consoles in the public areas of its hotels.

“In the era of technological convergence, Microsoft is as always front and center,” says Eric Boustouller, CEO of Microsoft France. “In our partnership with Novotel, we are taking this innovative room concept to a higher level with our best technologies. This new-generation room is an invitation to discover the latest advances in consumer technologies in a creative universe with a unique design."

The unique ambiance of Room 3120 is apparent once guests enter the room. It is designed to serve as a decompression chamber between the outside world and a spacious sensorial environment filled with ingenious practical features and interactive technology that surrounds guests without being overwhelming.

“We wanted to do something fresh, surprising and imaginative that would unleash people's energy,” explains Marcelo Joulia, head of Naço, the architecture firm chosen by Novotel to design Room 3120. “We started by re-thinking the basic space, which meant leaving the stuffy old cube behind. We also worked with light and found ways to keep the furniture from being in the way. Multifunctional, flexible and unhindered, Room 3120 adapts to the guest's desires, not vice-versa."

Although the innovative nature of the experiences available in Room 3120 may be surprising, they are extremely intuitive and ergonomic. The features are also designed for families, so they can play, surf or be entertained simply and easily.

Guests can also try out the brand new Sensorit mirror, also based on Kinect technology, where information tags seem to appear by magic, or turn on the fitness interface. And, for families, the Surface multimedia table offers numerous possibilities for two more players.

There's plenty for the grown-ups too, with fingertip access to a wide range of multimedia content, as well as music and news. Radio station NOVA (Le Grand Mix) and BFM Business, France's leading business and financial news media, have chosen to partner the Room 3120 project, which makes a point of providing rapid access to world news.

Room 3120 is now open to the public at the Novotel Vaugirard Montparnasse. Reservations will be taken for a period of three months. Designed to accommodate up to four guests (two adults and two children under 16), the room will be offered at €199 a night through February 14, 2012.

For reservations, go to www.novotel.com/room 3120.

About NOVOTEL
As the mid-scale hotel brand within the Accor Group portfolio, Novotel offers close to 400 hotels and resorts in 60 countries, situated in the center of major international cities from business districts to tourist destinations. Novotel's consistently high standard of service contributes to the wellbeing of both business and leisure travellers: think spacious, modular-design guestrooms, balanced cuisine available 24/7, excellent meeting facilities, attentive staff, dedicated children's areas and rejuvenating wellness facilities. The Novotel group is a pioneer in the area of sustainable development, and all Novotel hotels participate in the EarthCheck worldwide environmental certification program. More information at www.Novotel.com.

About Accor Worldwide,BR> Accor, the world's leading hotel operator and market leader in Europe, is present in 90 countries with 4,200 hotels and more than 500,000 rooms. Accor's broad portfolio of hotel brands - Sofitel, Pullman, MGallery, Novotel, Suite Novotel, Mercure, Adagio, ibis, all seasons/ibis styles, Etap Hotel/ibis budget, hotelF1 and Motel 6 - provide an extensive offer from luxury to budget. With 145,000 employees worldwide, the Group offers to its clients and partners nearly 45 years of know-how and expertise.