Arizona Foothills Magazine - Smaller is Better

Smaller is Better

The latest trend in the hospitality industry has travelers thinking small. Hotel-within-a-hotel small.

Story by Dawson Fearnow

Do you find today’s sprawling and amenity-filled “mega-resorts” crowded and cacophonous? Are you tired of supersleek boutique properties that spend more effort tending to their trendy lounges than delivering top-notch customer service? If so, there’s a new trend taking shape across the nation that just might interest you. Known as a “hotel within a hotel,” the intimate, stand-alone or semi-detached properties are located on the grounds of a larger hotel or resort, and offer the sort of bespoke amenities and white-glove service you simply can’t find in a more impersonal setting.

Of course, offering top-of-the-line amenities and a more personalized experience to preferred (read: repeat or high-rate) guests has long been standard practice in the hospitality industry. Just ask any hotel guest queuing (and stewing) in another interminable check-in line, as V.I.P. customers glide right into a crisply staffed, private check-in area. In fact, you could look at this new trend as simply a further extension of existing programs for premium guests. However, some properties, like the $275 million Venezia Tower at The Venetian in Las Vegas, for instance, are taking this concept to a whole new level, offering ultra-exclusive accommodations where the well-heeled clientele are completely insulated from the hustle and bustle of already upscale properties like The Venetian.