Extended-stay hotels used to be considered drab places for employees being relocated or families in between homes.

“It was the down-market product,” says Brian McGuinness, global brand leader of Starwood’s Specialty Select Brands.

But in light of the rising stardom of apartment rental site Airbnb, hotel companies are realizing travelers want to feel like they’re home even when they’re on the road for long stretches of time for work. As a result, major hotel chains, including Starwood, Hyatt and Marriott, are expanding and modernizing their extended-stay offerings.

Think more modern guest room design, lobbies that look like living rooms, outdoor lounges, evening social hours and organized activities.

“The extended-stay model is changing,” McGuinness says.

It’s also growing. The number of extended-stay rooms in the USA went from a little more than 200,000 in 2001 to nearly 380,000 today, according to STR, which tracks supply and demand data for the hotel industry. PKF Hospitality Research’s analysis of the STR data found that over the past decade, about one in every five new rooms in the USA has been an extended-stay product. Extended-stay rooms are generally defined as having a kitchen that includes some form of a stove or cook-top.

Starwood’s Element, an environmentally friendly extended-stay hotel chain with sleek rooms and fun lobbies, has grown to 19 properties since its debut in 2008. McGuinness says that number will triple by 2018.

Marriott expects the number of Residence Inns to reach 1,000 by 2020, mostly in North America.

InterContinental Hotel Group’s Staybridge Suites brand has 216 hotels open and 106 in the pipeline. Its Candlewood Suites brand has 330 hotels open and 92 in the pipeline, says Heather Balsley, senior vice president of Americas Brand Management for IHG.

Chuck Dexter Jr., a computer engineer in Yorkville, Ill., says he likes staying at extended-stay hotels while on a business trip because he has a kitchen to cook when he doesn’t eat out and the staff gets to know him better.

“Extended-stay hotels serve the purpose of home away from home for people that need a temporary relocation to work,” he says.

Many of the properties are popping up in urban centers. In the past, extended-stay hotels were more commonly found in suburbs or near airports.

Hyatt House, for instance, this year moved into more urban locations such as downtown Salt Lake City, Atlanta and Seattle. Hyatt Houses can also be found in the Chelsea neighborhood of New York City and downtown New Orleans.

“They never would have done that 10 years ago,” says Bruce Ford, senior vice president at Lodging Econometrics, a research firm. “They didn’t have a strong demand to support it and say it would work. But when they began to test it, it proved to be wildly successful.”

Airbnb apartment rentals are starting to chip away at some of that success.

Hoteliers say they can provide a better alternative to Airbnb because they can offer more amenities and services. They also have rewards programs.

“An extended-stay hotel can deliver unique, personal touches and service amenities that Airbnb and other home stay businesses simply cannot, such as front-desk staff, maintenance staff, etc.,” says Bill Duncan, global head of Homewood Suites and Home2 Suites by Hilton.

These hotel heavyweights also face competition from smaller, independent companies such as ROOST Apartment Hotel, Redbury and Sonesta. Those brands came up with their own boutique versions of extended-stay hotels.

Sonesta’s ES Suites is rapidly growing, having nine openings in the past month, says Mike Wohl, vice president of operations. Personalized service is what sets it apart from other hotels, he says. Staff members create “Everyday Surprises” for guests, such as offering brown-bag lunches on National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day.

At the Redbury Hollywood in Los Angeles, an all-suite boutique hotel by parent company sbe, each room has a record player with a special vinyl collection curated by Capitol Records. Guests get vinyl versions of their favorite albums.

At ROOST Midtown in Philadelphia, which opened last year, rooms have rainfall showers and washers and dryers. The company has partnered with coffee company La Colombe to provide each guest with beans and sophisticated brewing tools. The hotel has a coffee concierge who will go to each apartment to give a brewing lesson.

“We essentially set out to create an environment that we would be psyched to stay in,” says Randall Cook, CEO and co-founder of ROOST Apartment Hotel. “I’m not sure why, but for some reason, a lot of the passion for service and design that has gone into the creation of the boutique hotel niche never made its way to the extended-stay segment of the market.”

Many of the companies try to appeal to Millennials, those in their 20s and early 30s who are likely to travel and spend more in upcoming years. Millennials tend to like communal public spaces that feel like coffeehouses, advanced technology and amenities that give a sense of the destination.

Diane Mayer, vice president and global brand manager of Residence Inn, says Baby Boomers won’t travel as much five years from now. The oldest of the Millennials are in their 30s and starting their peak business travel years. In five years, the youngest will finish college and start careers.

“They are now 15% of our customers, but in five years, as we see fewer Boomers and more Millennials, they will be more than a third,” she says.

Residence Inn recently debuted an evening social program called The Residence Inn Mix. On Mondays, guests can gather for must-see TV and appetizers. On some Wednesdays, food trucks are stationed at the properties.

Staybridge Suites offers complimentary breakfast and an evening reception called The Social. Candlewood Suites launched the Local Finds section in the Candlewood Cupboard. Guests can buy snacks, beverages and sundries unique to the destination on the honor system 24 hours a day.

Hilton’s Homewood Suites launched a Take Flight initiative to incorporate a contemporary design with engaging public spaces that still allow for privacy. At Home2 Suites, a new breakfast program offers guests more than 400 breakfast combinations.

Other big brands are reinventing themselves to compete with the influx of new extended-stay properties.

The 10-year-old Cambria Hotels and Suites, whose parent company is Choice Hotels, repositioned itself last year to appeal to business travelers and Millennials.

The properties have full-service bars and restaurants with hand-crafted cocktails and fresh bistro fare, big workout facilities, swimming pools, a grab-and-go sundry shop, ergonomic chairs and fresh coffee and espresso drinks.

Hawthorn Suites by Wyndham, which was founded in 1983 and became part of Wyndham Hotel Group in 2008, launched a prototype in late 2013. Lobbies are social spaces with a fireplace and communal dining area. There are outdoor lounges. Rooms have a contemporary design.

“Guests are telling us they love these enhancements and the greater sense of community with our fresh social spaces,” says Larry Hambro, vice president of operations for Hawthorn Suites by Wyndham. “Many of our hotels receive holiday cards and wedding announcements from guests for years after they’ve stayed because of the great relationships they’ve built with our staff.”

Source: http://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/hotels/2015/08/28/extended-stay-hotels-business-travelers/71310868/