Lodgings near the airport used to have
that terminal feeling, good only for an early flight or quick
business meeting. Not anymore.
The image of airport hotels is changing - from drab to dazzling. No
longer just a pit stop with a bed, the new airport hotel offers
spacious, high-tech rooms, dramatic design, and upscale dining.
With spas, workout facilities, and great lounges, some are becoming
desti- nations in and of themselves.
"We're a great boutique-style hotel that just happens to have a
very large airport attached to it," says Patrick Sorge, director of
sales for the Hyatt Regency at
Pittsburgh International Airport.
"Most people think of an airport hotel as a basic box with a
minimum of frills. Guests are surprised at our range of fitness
equipment and the indoor lap pool."
Connected to the main Landside Terminal by enclosed moving
walkways, Hyatt's newest onsite air- port hotel in Pittsburgh (they
have one in
Orlando, as well) illustrates the No.1 amenity an
airport hotel can offer: location. Travelers who book onsite
accommodations minutes (not miles) away from check-in counters can
trade nerve-jangling traffic jams for peace-of-mind convenience.
In addition, onsite hotels are good for business. A direct
connection is more advantageous for the business traveler who may
fly in for a day meeting at the hotel and leave without staying, or
who might arrive on a late-night flight for a meeting downtown the
next morning. "It's a service that benefits and boosts the image of
the airport, as well as the corporations located near it that use
the meeting facilities," says Sorge.
"Research at other airports with our customer base shows that
having immediate access to a hotel without having to get in a car
or on a shuttle is of great importance to a lot of business
travelers," notes Kevin Cox, senior executive vice-president at
Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, which has hopes of
building a 300-room upscale hotel that will sit on top of a new
international terminal currently under construction.