In an age where family travel is becoming increasingly popular, the hotel industry has been slow to adapt its offerings for younger guests. Historically, children have been catered to with simplistic amenities such as coloring books, crayons, and plush toys featuring the hotel’s logo. While these provisions may be comforting to some, they have long since become outdated. Enter Wanderland, a fresh consultancy hailing from London, aiming to revolutionize the landscape of child-friendly hospitality through imaginative and engaging experiences that cater specifically to children and teens.
Disrupting the Status Quo
Founded by Saar Shai and Alicia Zur-Szpiro, Wanderland dubs itself the “world’s first sommelier and atelier for all things kids, teens and hotels.” The partners’ unique perspective stems from their backgrounds in industries focused on children rather than traditional hospitality. This unconventional approach has equipped them with a creative mindset that is essential for identifying the shortcomings of the current offerings in hotels. According to Shai, city hotels particularly suffer from a lack of innovative ideas when it comes to accommodations for younger guests: “They don’t really bring themselves to think creatively about what they can do for kids,” he remarked.
Unlike other consultancies that might repeat common trends, Wanderland is committed to applying principles borrowed from various “kids industries” — a sector that includes toys, game design, and educational technology. This diverse range of influences allows them to pull valuable insights that hotels can utilize for a more enriching experience for their younger patrons.
One of Wanderland’s primary objectives is to bridge the gap between hotels and their youngest visitors. This effort is encapsulated in their upcoming Kids Hospitality Report, which aims to provide hotels with insights derived from best practices across various children-centric industries. A standout idea presented by Wanderland involves the introduction of a physical loyalty program designed specifically for kids. Shai notes that many hotel chains leverage loyalty programs as marketing drivers, but the absence of such initiatives for children is baffling.
Imagine a loyalty system where kids could earn collectible tokens during their hotel stay—entities they could trade for goodies at the hotel or use toward future visits. This idea is rooted in the popularity of games like Monopoly, where children are rewarded with tangible assets that they can save or spend, offering them a form of agency and making the hotel experience more interactive.
The challenges compound when considering the teenage demographic, which is notoriously difficult to engage. Here, Shai is not hesitant to embrace technology as a means of connection. For instance, Wanderland has developed an app called Surround that delivers location-based audio experiences. The app seeks to merge the love for music and podcasts with travel exploration in a way that resonates with teenagers. Unlike conventional audio guides that often aim to educate, Surround positions itself as an entertaining tool rather than a didactic experience, taking into account teenagers’ aversion to what they perceive as admonishment.
Perhaps what sets Wanderland apart in its approach to technology is their awareness of the need to balance screen time with analog experiences. While families may seek a reprieve from screens during a vacation, complete disregard for technology could alienate kids who are accustomed to gaming and social media. Instead, Wanderland advocates for integrating technology into gaming experiences that encourage family engagement, like providing multiple controllers for a video game console rather than just one or two.
Wanderland stands as a beacon of innovation, challenging hoteliers to step outside the archaic practices that have defined child-friendly offerings for too long. By fostering a creative environment that prioritizes engagement and fun for young guests, hoteliers stand to improve their appeal to families as a whole. Their commitment showcases how listening to children’s needs is not just important for guests but is also essential for a hotel’s competitive edge.
As families increasingly prioritize travel experiences, hotels must recognize the opportunity to enhance their amenity offerings for children and teens. By adopting the principles suggested by Wanderland, hotels have the potential not only to elevate the overall guest experience but also to foster lasting loyalty among young travelers, ensuring that they look forward to their next hotel stay with excitement rather than indifference.
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