InterContinental Hotels’ parent company IHG has come up with a new hotel brand called EVEN it plans to launch in 2013. The focus of this brand of hotels is on healthy travel, and it intends to make everything in the hotel up to speed with the wellness aspect of travel.

According to IHG, they made a study over 18 months and observed and talked to over 4,000 guests, and found the common thread that the need was there for a hotel which could help them with their health and wellness even when they travel. They have identified 4 priority areas – exercise, eat, work and rest. The approach towards these aspects sure seems unique and lateral, which may be a good thing. Here is the approach straight from the press release:

• Exercise– Guest rooms designed for in-room workouts with multi-functional room amenities (e.g. coat rack that doubles as a pull up bar); best in class gym with equipment and group exercise activities; “Wellness Wall” for fitness options in walking distance, tips and equipment rental; personalized guest service to offer advice on fitness options, ideas and/or instruction; all baked into the service experience, at no added cost to the guest.
• Eat– Nutritionally designed menus with a particular focus on natural, fresh, fit and energizing meals – available anytime; an open air café and bar; free flavored filtered water with glass bottles available to fill up and take back to the room; free coffee & mini-smoothies in the morning.
• Work– Rooms with high speed Wi-Fi, multimedia ports, easy access to outlets, ample desk space; and social spaces in the bar and lobby.
• Rest– Rooms offer revitalization and relaxation, including hypoallergenic linens, powerful showerheads, natural lighting, LED dimmers and antibacterial wipes.

Check out some of the renditions on the new website www.evenhotels.com, for example, the luggage rack which doubles up as a workout bench, and signature flavoured water which is supposed to be healthy.

IHG plans to announce the first EVEN location in Q2 2012 and expects the first hotel to open in the early 2013. More coming soon!

 

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