Staying in hotels can be a harrowing experience for people with disabilities. When Julie Reiskin, 58, tried to book an accessible room in Chicago, she got one with no roll-in shower. In D.C., the bed was too high. Throughout her travels, she’s often had to go days without bathing and has had to sleep in her power wheelchair.
Hoteliers have numerous opportunities to lure nonguests to their property in hopes of generating extra revenue. “It’s become a nice way to augment the slow periods,” said Kory Keith, spa director at The Ritz-Carlton Spa in Los Angeles, where locals take advantage of daylong wellness retreats and after-work pedicures and cocktails in the adjacent beauty salon.
Don't expect to find a front desk when you walk into an EVEN Hotel, a new wellness-oriented brand set to debut next year. Guests will instead be directed to a "Well-ness Island," where an employee will hand them either cool or heated hand towels, depending on the season. They'll also get a cup of water with a slice of lemon or lime to sip. When checking in, they can forgo the traditional room key card for a bracelet that serves the same function, which they can wear while running.
There was a time in the not-so-distant past when every big hotel needed a spa. Leisure travelers demanded it, and business travelers did, too — to reward themselves, their clients or their employees with lavish massage and steam-filled weekends in opulent settings. No more. Today, the oversize hotel spa has pretty much gone the way of limitless credit and fancy holiday parties.
After Ben Miller had spinal surgery for scoliosis at Shriners Hospital for Children, he couldn't endure the eight hours of sitting that the trip back home to Northern California would require. Instead, for nine days after his midwinter release from the hospital, 12-year-old Ben stayed at the Ritz-Carlton Philadelphia under a new program, believed to be the first in the country, designed to help with his recovery.