It’s no secret: Seasoned traveler and Gen Y attendees are increasingly seeking to immerse themselves in a destination via authentic experiences and activities that can’t be had elsewhere. “Something millennials and boomers have in common is the quest for authenticity when they travel, says Regina Baraban, editor of www.GenerationsGo.com. They look for meaningful local experiences as opposed to generic luxury in every aspect of a hotel stay, including amenities.”
Smart hoteliers are addressing this expectation throughout the travel experience, all the way to the amenities they offer:
At Rosewood San Miguel de Allende, the luxury boutique hotel located in a historic artists’ village in central Mexico, guests are welcomed with an easel in their room, complete with paints and tools so that they can create their own works to take home. (For families, the kit even includes kid-sized easels.)
Upon arrival at The Lodge at Glendorn, the Relaix & Chateaux property located on 1,500 acres in Bradford, Penn., guests are given a welcome amenity of fish food that they can use to use to feed the fish at Glendorn’s onsite hatchery. The property also stocks guest cabins with fly rods fully rigged with flies and gear for fly-fishing excursions.
At Miraval Resort & Spa, the luxury destination spa in Tucson, Ariz., guests receive a ‘seed bomb,’ a compressed bundle of soil containing seeds which they are encouraged to plant during their stay to create a flowering landscape and help them shift into a more mindful state—important for the Miraval experience.
