laura agadoni
Why Pop-Up Hotels Are In Fashion
JLL Real Views | June 30, 2017
By Laura Agadoni Staying in an air-conditioned luxury shelter at a music festival or a bespoke yurt in the Andes seemed like a distant thought even just a few years ago. Now, both experiences have become a reality for a small but growing group of festival goers and travelers thanks to pop-up hotels. "Pop-up hotels offer adventure seekers an exciting travel experience they can post about on their social media accounts," says Geraldine Guichardo, Americas Head of Hotels Research for JLL. "Music festivals in particular are driving the opportunity for pop-up hotels to exist." Marriott's partnership with Coachella, a California music festiva...
Why Hotels Are Setting up Shop in Suburban Shopping Centers
JLL Real Views | June 15, 2017
By Laura Agadoni Imagine stepping outside your suburban hotel, and instead of jumping in a car to shop or eat, you can easily walk to all your favorite stores and restaurants. Across the U.S., new hotels are enabling their guests to have local amenities on their doorstep – by backfilling vacant shopping center space. It's not just an arrangement that benefits guests and the hotel chains; it's also helping to revitalize American shopping centers that may have lost a middle-market anchor. Over the past two years, large format anchors have closed. JCPenney, Macy's, and Sears and Kmart are shutting down 324 stores between them across ...
All-Inclusive Hotels Have a New Look for a New Era
JLL Real Views | May 30, 2017
By Laura Agadoni Today's All-Inclusive hotels still tempt vacationers with all-you-can-eat buffets and free flowing drinks, but that's where the similarities end with the traditional All-Inclusive model. The All-Inclusive, or AI, vacation has been around since the 1950s when the idea of a comprehensive vacation package that included meals, lodging, and entertainment appealed to cost-conscious travelers. It's still a popular concept today, but the business model behind that concept has evolved dramatically. Take, for example, the food in the plentiful buffets found at many All-Inclusive resorts. Today, that food is likely to be locally ...
Hotels Take a Fresh Look at Communal Spaces
JLL Real Views | March 20, 2017
By Laura Agadoni From hip lobbies with a coffee shop ambiance to shared living spaces linking guest rooms, more hotels are turning their focus to providing inviting community areas. For corporate travelers, it may mean sending a few emails from a co-working alcove complete with power and USB outlets, while leisure visitors may linger around tables stacked with board games or post photos to social media from the lounging zones. "Today's travelers often place greater value on convenience, sense of place and community than they do on the traditional luxuries offered by hotels," says David A. Black, Americas Hotels Lead, JLL Project and Dev...
Close to Home: Why U.S. Investors Want U.S. Hotels
JLL Real Views | March 1, 2017
by Laura Agadoni If 2016 was all about overseas money flowing into the U.S. hotels sector then 2017 could well be the year of the domestic investor. With the U.S. economy performing strongly and hotel occupancy in the country reaching a new record in 2016 despite increases in supply, U.S. investors are taking a keen interest in assets closer to home. Domestic private equity funds and real estate investment trusts (REITs) stand to be quick off the mark to step up their investment activity. "Hotel real estate investment trusts have seen a resurgence in their share prices, up about 20 percent just in the last few months. And in years when...
U.S. Hotels Make Chinese Travelers Feel at Home
JLL Real Views | May 9, 2016
by Laura Agadoni In a growing number of U.S. hotels, fried noodles and congee are joining the bacon and eggs on the breakfast buffet, chopsticks are lining up alongside the forks and staff are being trained to say "huanying" as well as "welcome". Chinese travelers are flocking to America – where they're being welcomed with open arms particularly following a 2014 visa agreement, which extends business and tourism visas from China to the US (and vice versa) from one year to 10 years. The US government is aiming to encourage Chinese travel to the US to help boost the tourism sector as well as the wider economy. And for good reason &n...
Hotels Up Their Game for Fitness Conscious Guests
JLL Real Views | April 4, 2016
By Laura Agadoni Whether they're on a business trip or on holiday, a growing number of travelers are keen to keep up their workout regime away from home – and for many this means heading to the hotel gym. Hotels, in turn, are aware of the need to cater for their lycra-clad guests: The number of hotels with fitness facilities jumped from 63 percent in 2004 to 84 percent in 2014, according to a study by the American Hotel & Lodging Association. Indeed, fitness offerings are fast becoming a way for hotels to edge ahead in a competitive marketplace. "The space for hotel brands is becoming more and more crowded," says Lauro Ferroni...
