Hotel design involves the planning, drafting,

design A design is a plan or specification for the construction of an object or system or for the implementation of an activity or process or the result of that plan or specification in the form of a prototype, product, or process. The verb ''to design'' ...

and development of

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...

s. The concept of hotel design is rooted in traditions of

hospitality Hospitality is the relationship between a guest and a host, wherein the host receives the guest with some amount of goodwill, including the reception and entertainment of guests, visitors, or strangers. Louis de Jaucourt, Louis, chevalier de J ...

to travellers dating back to ancient times, and the development of many diverse types of hotels has occurred in many cultures. For example, the advent of

rail travel Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

in the early 1900s led to the planning, design and development of hotels near railroad stations that catered to rail travelers. Hotels around Grand Central Terminal in New York City are an example of this phenomenon. Hotel

interior design Interior design is the art and science of enhancing the interior of a building to achieve a healthier and more aesthetically pleasing environment for the people using the space. An interior designer is someone who plans, researches, coordina ...

and styles are very diverse, with numerous variations existent.

Types of hotels

Numerous types of hotel designs exist in the world. Examples of hotel designs include guest palaces across

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

, English country inns, hotel-casino resorts, designer and art hotels, hotel-spa resorts,

boutique hotel Boutique hotels are small inventory, design driven, unique hotels with their own character, personality and storytelling at the heart of their concept. Positioning is secondary for these hotels as they focus on authenticity and personalization ...

s, "no-frills" hotels that offer very basic amenities at budget rates, basic rooming houses,

monasteries A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

offering refuge and spare bedrooms rented out in ordinary homes. Another type is capsule hotels, which are offered in Japan as an option for those who just need the basic necessities during their stay. Historically, the development of

lodging Lodging refers to the use of a short-term dwelling, usually by renting the living space or sometimes through some other arrangement. People who travel and stay away from home for more than a day need lodging for sleep, rest, food, safety, shel ...

areas and facilities was sometimes driven by their physical locations, such as at river crossings, at major trading posts or in locations lending themselves to defense, such as

fort A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

s or

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

s. Property location continues to be a key consideration in hotel design in contemporary times. Many hotels throughout the United States cater to either tourists or residents. Visitors of the hotel have the options ranging from renting a room for one night or renting a suite for a month. Though residential hotels are not as popular today as they were in the past, they still provide a significant number of America's homes.

Professional design

Contemporary hotel design can be sophisticated and functional, involving specialist

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

s and designers, environmental and structural

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

s, interior designers and skilled

contractors A general contractor, main contractor or prime contractor is responsible for the day-to-day oversight of a construction site, management of vendors and trades, and the communication of information to all involved parties throughout the course of ...

and suppliers, particularly for large, intricate projects. Hotel design can involve the refurbishment of an existing building already used for lodging, the conversion of a building previously used for another purpose or the

construction Construction is a general term meaning the art and science to form objects, systems, or organizations,"Construction" def. 1.a. 1.b. and 1.c. ''Oxford English Dictionary'' Second Edition on CD-ROM (v. 4.0) Oxford University Press 2009 and com ...

of new buildings. USA base
Newport Design Group
is considered among the Top Design Firms specializing in branded hotels for many of the top franchises. Other firms include ReardonSmith Architects, HOK, Gensler and WATG. Hotel design involves planning regarding the estimated client needs for the facility along with the designers' vision. Hotel buildings may have several various functions, including

restaurant A restaurant is a business that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in appearan ...

s, outdoor facilities and swimming pools, fitness centers and spas. Contemporary hotel design involves effectively integrating these various aspects of hotel operations within a location to minimize interference with one another. For example, hotel design includes considerations to avoid guests being inundated with excessive noise and the movement of people. Hotels are usually designed from the inside-out to ensure the practical functionality and relationship of its parts.

Cultural influences

Hotel designers bring to their work their own cultural

mores Mores (, sometimes ; , plural form of singular , meaning "manner, custom, usage, or habit") are social norms that are widely observed within a particular society or culture. Mores determine what is considered morally acceptable or unacceptable ...

and need to understand the culture in which the hotel will operate if working outside their native environment. Due to travel becoming international in scope, links with local traditions in many hotel designs have been weakened, and ‘International’ has become a style in its own right. Some hotels base their operations with a theme of vernacular local traditional styles, while others have modernist stylistic designs. Hotel design ranges from basic variables, such as the appropriate height for bed head light switches to the more specialized, such as the right layout for a

kitchen A kitchen is a room or part of a room used for cooking and food preparation in a dwelling or in a commercial establishment. A modern middle-class residential kitchen is typically equipped with a stove, a sink with hot and cold running water, a ...

or the sightlines from reception areas to enable control and protection of entry to rooms. The pace of change in hotel design has, as in most areas of modern life, increased with the development of innovative technology. Despite cultural variations, hotels commonly function to provide a welcome environment that supports the comfort of its guests for work, rest and relaxation.

Remodeling

Hotels are consistently being updated to maintain the health of the hotel. During a remodel or renovation you will be dealing with the interior of the hotel like furniture, maintenance, and layout. The exterior of the hotel needs updates like roofing. Each year the amount of money put in the update is increasing. The furniture in the hotel every few years needs to be replaced. New areas to hotel like weight rooms, arcades or business rooms with computers are added to hotels as part of remodels. Maintenance updates throughout the hotel occur every 15–25 years. Hotels have been converting to be more eco-friendly. During remodels and renovations sections of the hotel are block off while they work on that current part, then move on to the next section and continue this until all the work is finished. This way the hotel can stay open while remodeling.

Types of hotels

Professional design

Cultural influences

Remodeling

See also

Notes

References

Further reading

External links