Five-star hotels often justify their exorbitant prices by offering a suite of high-end amenities, like plush robes, pillow menus, concierge services, and more.
But the hottest new amenity flowing into luxury hospitality is one you might not expect to pay top dollar for: good ol’ H2O.
A growing number of upscale hotels are ditching standard water bottles and investing instead in high-tech filtration systems, per Robb Report.
- At Conrad New York Downtown, every room is outfitted with a Rocean Zero filtration system — a sleek device that blends into the existing mini bar setup — plus a complimentary steel bottle. (It also installed a fancy water dispenser in its lobby that uses desiccant technology to convert atmospheric air into drinkable water.)
- The L7 in Chicago, which opened last year, pairs reusable bottles with a reverse-osmosis filtration system by Apec Water that’s built into its rooms’ faucets, so guests can drink straight from the tap.
- Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills is hoping to eventually get its high-paying guests to drink recycled wastewater purified through its Epic Cleantec filtration system.
Why?
They’re cost effective and sustainable — L7’s filtration system, for example, costs just $15 per faucet and is estimated to save ~97k plastic bottles from being used annually — making it a hit with both hotel managers and guests.
- The majority of global tourists (73%) prefer to stay in hotels with eco-friendly accommodations, according to the World Tourism Organization.
Plus, the filtration systems allow hotels to control the flavor and experience of their in-house water, which Robb Report writes has become “especially important for luxury hotels.”
Beyond the suite…
… hotels and other hospitality businesses are giving water the high-brow treatment in a variety of ways — several restaurants now have water menus and water sommeliers, and many spas, like the Hotel Royal Evian Spa in France, are making H2O a focal point of their services.
It’s all part of a broader “luxury hydration” trend that’s given rise to things like $300 medical-grade water bottles, and which leading hydration expert Martin Riese says hotels are finally catching on to.
And though the concept — essentially, the premiumization of life’s most basic necessity — might seem a bit ridiculous, it fits into the greater health and wellness movement influencing today’s microplastic-wary, trendy drinkware-loving consumers.
Hospitality