Twenty-five years ago, when hotels catered to female business travelers, it
meant putting skirt hangers in the closet. Now that women make up nearly half of
all business travelers, many hotels, from mid-range to six-star, are offering
all sorts of women-friendly elements in everything from room design to room
service.
That means full-length mirrors and magnifying two-sided mirrors, as well as
better lighting in the bathroom, so you don't have to put on makeup to the
creepy glow of fluorescent bulbs, and in the shower, so you don't have to shave
your legs in the dark. There are not only skirt hangers but also padded hangers
and an iron and ironing board. Also, hair dryers aren't attached to the wall and
may have diffusers, and you can finally get some decent bathroom amenities,
often from trusted upscale brands like Aveda, Bulgari and The Body Shop.
Catering to women also means paying attention to food. Many hotel companies,
including Fairmont, Hyatt, Hilton, Marriott and Starwood, offer menu items that
appeal to the nutrition- or calorie-conscious. Room service menus, which used to
have a limited list of options, all in the hamburger, club sandwich, french
fries vein, now also offer healthier fare: salads, grilled chicken and fish, and
fresh fruit.
Even the minibar has been reconsidered with women in mind. The
James Chicago Hotel,
for example, stocks its minibars with health bars and vitamin supplements. At
W Hotels' minibars, next to
the designer comestibles, is the woman's "emergency survival kit," a boxed set
of tubes of three different colors of lip gloss, mascara and perfume; the
"emergency fashion kit" includes a classic Diane von Furstenberg black wrap
dress with a matching thong, packaged together in a garment bag. At Boston's
XV Beacon, a luxury
boutique hotel, there are two minibars in each room: one for premium beverages,
like wine and vodka; the other for stress relievers and energy boosters, like
aromatherapy oils, an eye pillow, energy bars, ginseng, vitamins, a high-protein
drink and caffeinated peppermints.
If you're a jogger,
Hotel Teatro in Denver offers a daily escorted guided run on Cherry Creek
Trail followed by refreshments--nutrition bars, fresh fruit and mineral waters.
And although men are welcome to join the running group, it was designed for
women who don't want to run in a city they don't know well.
To soothe travel stress,
Kimpton Hotels allow
guests to have spa services, such as a manicure, pedicure or massage, performed
in the privacy of their room. There are attractive workout facilities in the
hotels, but if you want to work out alone, you can call the front desk for a
complimentary yoga basket, with mat, block and strap, and practice to a 24-hour
yoga channel. Kimpton also has a Forgot It, We've Got It service, so if you need
hair styling products, you can get some--from Sebastian, no less--along with
sunscreen, Static Guard, hand-held steamers, spray wrinkle remover and, for road
warrior aches and pains, heating pads. The
Hotel Palomar in
San Francisco has a special amenity program that stocks items most often
left at home by women travelers: nylons, tweezers, lint brushes, hair styling
products, nail polish remover and earring backs.
Traveling internationally? Many of the hotels in the
Sol Melia group have a
female physician on call.
And then there are some hotels that offer women-only floors. The
Lady's First Hotel in
Zurich was founded in 1994 by eight professional women who wanted to create a
property with a lovely ambience that could also provide jobs and training for
unemployed women. The small, 28-room hotel is in an elegant, totally renovated
19th century mansion. The top floors, including a spa, rooftop terrace and
workout room, are for women only. In the U.S., the
Crowne Plaza Hotel in
Bloomington, Minnesota has an all-female floor with makeup mirrors, fresh
flowers and premium chocolates. It costs about $30 extra a night, like many club
floors.
One of the more interesting women-only floors is at
Don Shula's Hotel & Golf
Club in Miami Lakes, Florida. The 18 rooms on the Patrician Floor, named for
the developer's wife, offer magazines targeted toward women, cards with breast
exam instructions hanging on the shower head, upscale toiletries, a
guest-preference program, so returning travelers have the reading material and
snacks they like in their room when they check in, and complimentary breakfast.
Rooms on the Patrician floor run $20 to $30 more per night than standard rooms,
but that cost is roughly the same as a room-service breakfast.