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Instagram Travel Revolution

Picture of Tyler Wilcox Tyler Wilcox : October 26, 2018

Where digital meets travel + lifestyle … A collection of can’t-miss news from this week. Sign up to get the TURNER Weekly Download in your inbox every Friday.

The Instagram Travel Revolution

“Instagram is figuratively and literally reshaping travel,” says Henry Harteveldt, a travel industry analyst. “Now you see airports, airlines, cruise ships, hotels and points of interest designing or redesigning their interiors to be Instagram-friendly.” A New York Times piece by Elaine Glusac covers the ways the platform is changing the way we travel. “[I]f there seems to be a bit more whimsy in the world — like pink flamingo pool floaties or, at the JW Marriott Desert Springs in Nevada, a 10-pound doughnut available on room-service — you can safely bet Instagram helped motivate it,” she writes.

Trending: Green Hospitality

The hospitality industry is changing rapidly – so much so that it can be hard to keep up. Over on Forbes, Sagar Chitre of the ITM Institute of Hotel Management has a handy guide to some of the trends shaking things up. One of them is being aware. “Cultural learning and conscious living is the dictum of ‘greener’ travelers,’” he writes. “Millennials will prefer to book reservations at hotels that engage in environmental or community responsible programs.”

Voice Tech

Another way that hotels are elevating guest experience is via voice technology such as Alexa. However, it’s not just for in-room requests. “The entire hotel team, from the housekeepers and the bellmen to the engineers to guest services managers, are also using Alexa to manage their daily life tasks,” Steve Sasso, general manager of the Motif Seattle A Destination Hotel, told Skift. “For example, they can use it to notify the system if the room is ready for room service or check-in, to set a pick-up request, or use it as a tool to request items as well.”

Nightcap Elevated

The mini-bar won’t cut it anymore. Luxury hotels are taking their cocktail room service to the next level. “[H]oteliers are realizing that expertly shaken martinis are just what travelers want showing up at their doors,” writes Kerry Medina. “In some cases, that means dispatching a bartender for in-person service. At other times, it’s about making a room’s minibar feel more like a home bar.” Cheers!

Weekly Moment of Zen

Your feline friend will be excited. Finally, a luxury hotel just for cats is expected to open in California this December.

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