HOTELS GETBusiness travelers now place a greater innportance on fitness, moving allsegments of the hospitality business to re-evaluate their fitness offerings.

Not many hotel guests expect touse an 85,000-square-foot fit-ness center for free with their$259 per night hotel room.Nor do they expect to take aZumba class, book a sessionwith a personal trainer or

receive nutritional counseling while there.However, at Renaissance ClubSport, theycan do just that.

Leisure Sports, a development andmanagement company headquartered inPleasanton, CA, operates five ClubSportathletic clubs. But it also operates twoRenaissance ClubSport facilities, one inWalnut Creek, CA, and the other in AlisoViejo, CA, that are more than fitness cen-ters. Through a franchising arrangementwith the Marriott, which owns Renais-sance hotels, each of these facilities is afitness center and a hotel operating asone business, says Brian Amador, generalmanager of Renaissance ClubSport and

director of hotel and club operations forLeisure Sports. (For more on Renais-sance ClubSport, read the online story atwww.clubindustry.com.)

"The club is very insulating againstthe shifts that a hotel can have due to theeconomy or business moving in and outof the area," Amador says. "A hotel canbe very volatile, and the club can be verystable. So as a business model, workingtogether is a sound model."

Although Renaissance ClubSportmay be unique, fitness has become animportant draw for guests in much ofthe hospitality business, starting in theluxury brands, then making its way tofull-service brands and now even ateconomy brands. One of those economybrands is Days Inn Worldwide, Parsip-pany, NJ, which will introduce a fitnessprogram starting in September. (Formore on Days Inn's plan, read the onlinestory at www.clubindustry.com.)

Several studies on hotel fitnessofferings led to a re-evalution of fitnessamenities by many hotels. A 2006 study,in particular, had an effect on HiltonWorldwide, McLean, VA, accordingto Jodi Sullivan, senior director of 'global fitness for Hilton. That studyfound that the majority of the morethan 500 business travelers surveyedsaid fitness centers were among the topfive most important features of a hotel.Hilton Worldwide's own research in2006 found that the presence of a well-maintained hotel fitness center featuringhigh-end equipment could increase guestsatisfaction by as much as 30 percent,Sullivan says.

"It was extremely important backthen, and it continues to grow in impor-tance," she says.

After reviewing the research, Hiltondetermined in 2006 to make fitness ahigh priority by teaming with Precor,

By Pamela Kufahl, editor-in-chief

Leisure Sports operates two Renaissance ClubSport facilities, which are hotels and 85,000-square-foot fitness centers. The centers offer hotelquest access to the same pools, kayaking classes. Zumba classes and other amenities as members. Photos courtesy of Leisure Sports.

Hiiton Woridwide tries tolocate its fitness centers inpremium spaces witiiin itshotels (right). Photocourtesy of Hilton Worldwide

brands (right), Inter-Continental HotelsGroup is launching awellness brand calledEVEN. Photo courtesyof IntercontinentalHote

HOTELS GET FITWoodinville, WA, to launch co-brandedFitness by Precor fitness facilities at full-service Hilton, Doubletree and EmbassySuites hotels in North America and atthe Waldorf Astoria in New York City.A year later, it was rolled out across theentire portfolio. Today, Hilton has fitnesscenters in 3,900 hotels, Sullivan says.

Also in 2006, Hilton Worldwide creat-ed a fitness department to oversee fitnesscenters and Wellness programming acrosseach of its brands. Sullivan leads the de-partment with support by the property,operations and other departments.

"It is my responsibility to create thatstate-of-the-art environment to motivateand empower our guests to continue ahealthy Hfestyle on the road, especially whenthey are staying with us," Sullivan says.

TAKING MEASUREMENTSOther hotel chains also began respond-

ing to these survey insights, moving theirfitness centers out of converted formerconference rooms to more prominent

locations. At least one hotel group, Inter-Continental Hotels Group (IHG), Den-ham, UK, which operates nine brands, hasannounced a Wellness hotel brand calledEVEN Hotels. (Read more about EVENHotels online atwww.clubindustry.com.)

Since 2004, the number of hotels thatoffer a fitness option has grown, accord-ing to the American Hotel and LodgingAssociation's (AHLA) 2012 LodgingSurvey of 12,000 hotels. In 20Í2, 84 per-cent of hotels at all levels offered a fitnesscenter, up from 63 percent in 2004.

Ninety-nine percent of luxury hotelsoffered a fitness center in 2012 comparedto 92 percent in 2004, and 99 percentof upper upscale hotels had an exerciseroom or fitness center in 2012 comparedto 95 percent in 2004.

Ninety-eight percent of upscale hotelshad a fitness center or exercise room in2012 compared to 95 percent in 2004.Almost as high were the upper midscalechains with 96 percent in 2012. The 2004survey did not include this category.

Eighty-three percent of midscalechains had exercise rooms or fitness cen-ters in 2012, an increase from 2004 whenthe midscale hotels were broken out bythose with food and beverage (72 percenthad a fitness option) and those without(78 percent had a fitness option).

In the economy market, 46 percentoffered a fitness center or room in 2012,an increase from 2004 when 29 percentoffered the same.

Despite these numbers, Joe Mclner-ney, president and CEO of AHLA, saysthat the importance of hospitality fit-ness centers often depends on the hotel'slocation. Hotels on an interstate highwaytypically attract travelers who are justpassing through and are less interested inworking out. However, hotels in cities-even economy hotels—typically attractmore multi-night business travelers whoare more focused on fitness.

For hotels with a large contingent ofbusiness travelers, competition can befierce, so meeting expectations is key.

JakeCheck In: 7:55amAvg Class Plays/Wk: 3.2Member Date: 12/2004

Andrea i'Check In: 7:59amAvg Class PlaysAA/k: 2.5Member Date: 3/2009'ui Invited DanaFavorite Class: Fusion 235Favorite Instructor: Erin

DanaCheck In: 8:01 amAvg Class Plays/Wk: 6Member Date: 1/2013Favorite Instructor: Sara

"Everything now for the hospitalityindustry is about the guest experience,"says Kent Collins, director of globalnational accounts at Life Fitness, SchillerPark, IL. "Everything they are trying todo is enhance that guest experience. Thefitness center is no different from anyother common area in their facility."

Hotel operators also know that guestsexpect more of their hotel's fitness centertoday, Sullivan says.

"They are expecting the same if notbetter workout experience than they haveat their local gym," she says.

The growing importance ofthe fitnesscenter can be seen in the fact that theyare no longer relegated to the basement.Sullivan's department works with everyHilton Worldwide property globally toassist them with building out the space,advising them to seek premium space onupper levels.

Luxury hotels often had a good mixof equipment, but now, more mid-pricedhotels are adding a better mix of equip-

Later this year, Intercontinental Hotels Group will open its first EVEN Hotel, a wellness-oriented brand. Image courtesy of Intercontinental Hotels Group.

ment that includes balance along withcardio and strength equipment, accord-ing to Steve Suchanek, director of prod-uct management at Cybex International,Medway, MA. Cardio still takes up themajority of space in most hotel fitnesscenters, he adds.

The importance of cardio means thatthe options on cardio are becoming morevital, including entertainment options andtechnology that allows users to track theirworkouts. Tracking has become easier withthe networked fitness options on the latestgeneration of most cardio equipment.

Because fitness offerings are more

important to the hospitality market, thatmarket has become more attractive tovendors. Even though most hospitalitygrowth is occurring in Asia Pacific whereCollins estimates two hotels open everyday, the U.S. hotel market also remainsattractive. In 2011, the United States had51,214 hospitality properties, accordingto AHLA. Those properties refresh theirequipment every four to six years, Col-lins says.

Beyond that, inclusion in a hotel fitnesscenter is good advertising for vendors.

"Consider the fact that hotels are likeshow rooms for us," says Jay MuUer, area

LisaCheck In: 7:46amMember Date: Guest

DanielCheck In: 7:45amMember Date: 11/2011fcj Invited LisaFavorite Class: Vibe 250

Introducing the only solution that helps you

fill the room and -understand it.• See WHO is using your GroupX program

• Understand WHEN to make schedule changes ,

• Identify WHAT trends are happening in your club

• Find out HOW your program is working withunbiased data & member feedback a

• Get reports WHEREVER you area- J w C O C

• ' ' ' - ^ - v * ^ ^ -Instantreporting

Download our free whitepaper on measurable ROIfrom Fitness On Request.

Call 888-520-7501www.FitnessOnRequest.com

elements including SO-i-pre-recordied classes to a• " " • to your schedule from Elements Fitness

Visit buyersguide.ciubindu5try.com for more information on tiiis advertiser.

HOTELS GET FITsales developer-hospitality for Tech-nogym, Cesena, Italy. Guests use thatvendor's equipment for the length of theirstay, which equals brand exposure thatcould translate to an equipment sale.

OPERATION PLANSEven with the growing emphasis on

providing higher quality fitness centers,few hotel operators have the expertiseto manage the larger centers that needoversight. Some hotel operators haveturned to management companies oreven commercial clubs, Mclnerney says.Other hotels partner with health clubs toplace a club inside their hotel walls.

None ofthe U.S.-located IHG brandshave third parties manage their gyms,the company says. However, in certainmarkets and where appropriate, IHG haspartner gyms. For example, the com-pany's Crowne Plaza Times Square hotelpartners with New York Sports Clubs,which is located inside the hotel.

Management at Hilton brands varies.Some manage their own fitness centerswhile others use third-party manage-ment, Sullivan says. Hotels with com-mercial clubs in close proximity may havean agreement allowing guests to use thecommercial club.

In 2010, Core Performance, Phoenix,began designing workout programs forSheraton Hotels & Resorts Worldwide,which invested $120 million in rolling outthe program that also includes healthier foodoptions in hotels and room service menus,in-room workouts and healthy snacks.

Exhale, New York, operates its clubsin several hotels. The Sports Club/LAhas agreements with The Ritz-CarltonBoston and Washington and several FourSeasons hotels.

RETURN ON INVESTMENTAlthough some hotels do charge for

the use of the fitness center, many donot. The 2012 AHLA study found that

25 percent of hotels charge, down from41 percent in 2004. Luxury hotels aremost likely to offer free use ofthe fitnesscenters (93 percent in 2012 compared to92 percent in 2004) while that numbersteadily declines with each price seg-ment, ending with just 24 percent ofbudget clubs offering free use of thefitness center, compared to 26 percentin 2004.

Because few hospitality fitness cen-ters provide a direct financial reward, thereturn on investment can be intangible,measured solely by scores on guest sat-isfaction surveys.

"Sometimes the return on investmentis that if you don't have it, you won'tget the customers so you have to haveit, but you can't put a number to that,"Mclnerney says. "You can't say that Igot another 20 people because I had thefitness center."

However, Clyde Guinn, president ofDays Inn, part of the Wyndham Hotel

Paying toomuch foL-

Using ano• ^ i ^ of wipes? W

Wipes? ."-

AntibacterialGym Wipes

AutomatedExternalDefibrillators(AEDs)

HandSanitizers

Using another brand

of wipes? We'll send you aHand Dryers

Eco-FriendiyAir Fresheners

First Aid KitsDisinfectants& Deodorizers

You probably are if you're not using Zogics.We're so confident in our pricing, if wecan't lower your wipe costs by at least 10%,we'll give you a case of our wipes for free($60 value). Great prices, great service andsame day shipping. Contact us today to seehow much you can save.

Visit iniyersguide.clubindustryxoin for more information on this advertiser.

3 6 • CLUB INDUSTRY.COM | April 2013

The DayFit program that Days Inn will introduce in September will convertone to two guests rooms (depending on the size of the hotel) on the grouhdlevel into a fitness room. Image courtesy of Wyndham Hotel Group.

Group, says one ofthe main ways to measure return is throughthe STAR Report, developed by Smith Travel Research. MostU.S. hotels participate in the STAR Report, which collects allthe occupancy and average rate data for the majority of NorthAmerican hotels. Smith Travel Research puts each hotel in acompetitor set, which is a group of at least five competitors inthat hotel's tier level and neighborhood. The participating hotelscan then compare their performance to that of their competi-tive set on a weekly and monthly basis. Guinn says that throughthis report, operators can determine if adding a fitness centertranslates to higher occupancy rates than competitors withoutfitness centers.

However, the more immediate indicator of a return on thisinvestment comes from feedback online, particularly throughTrip Advisor, Guinn says. Days Inn's first statistics from its TripAdvisor scores (which allow ratings from 1.0 on the low end to

Mobody likeswet fíoors.

Dri-DekFree Samples dri-dekconi 800-348-2398

Visit buyersquidexiubindustryxom for more information on this advertiser..

LOCKERS

We're hiring!POWER WELLNESS, a nationalleader in developing and operatingmedically integrated fitness andWellness centers, is currently hiring forvarious employment opportunities,including Center Directors acrossthe country.

To submit your resume or formore information, please visit theemployment section of our website,powerwellness.com.

Callfus^fora ffee^qïïoté or catalogf

1'800-562-5377Visit iNiyersguidexiubindustry.com for more information on ttiis advertiser. Visit buyersquidexiubindustry.com for more infiNmation on tbis advertiser.

HOTELS GET FIT5.0 on the high end) showed that the dif-ference in revenue per available room fora hotel that rated a 4.0 vs. a 3.0 was $10more per day per room, Guinn says. Fora 100-room hotel with 36,500 availableroom nights per year, that equates to anadditional $365,000 per year in revenue.

"That is a difference in every roomyou have available in a year regardless ofwhether you sold it or not," Guinn says."That difference is almost pure profit."

Guinn says he is convinced that hisbrand's DayFit program will help DaysInn franchisees improve their rankingsand increase their revenue.

"You can monetize this," Guinn says. "Iam extremely confident that it will result ina better market share for our brand and abetter financial situation for our owners."

HOTELS FOLLOW CLUBSDespite the greater focus on fitness

in the hospitality business, the industry

has room for growth in this area. MuUersays that some hotels still shop by pricepoint, but as the world continues to be-come more social and mobile, hotels willlook for partners to provide content thatoffers guests a unique, entertaining andengaging experience. To do so, hotelswill need to know their guests, how theylike to exercise and their motivations forexercising.

"Understanding what motivates themto move to help personalize the experienceis probably the most critical thing in thefuture for the properties," Müller says.

As the equipment at more commercialclubs become networked, hotels will feelthe pressure to offer the same, says DavidDiehl, global hospitality sales managerfor Precor, because people will expectmore from their equipment, including theability to track their progress. This move-ment means opportunities for creativemarketing and loyalty programs, which

could turn hospitality fitness centers intorevenue generators. These types of mar-keting opportunities are already beingused in commercial clubs.

"I think the club industry is settingthe pace for the hotel industry becauseclub members are the heart ofthe travel-ing sector," Amador says. "And they arebecoming more knowledgeable, and theyare driving a lot ofthe decisions that weare making in the hotels these days be-cause it is a very educated clientele."

Equipment quality, environmentalquality, and the cleanliness and conditionof the facility drive successful clubs andwill drive successful hotel fitness centers.Amador says.

"People have come to realize thattravel may not be the healthiest thing todo," Amador says. "People are lookingfor healthy travel, and I think hotels havepositioned themselves to accommodatethat need. They have to." •

mvautmi:

CORP

Let the Revolution Begin!(888) 977-3726 www.2xlcorp.com

Visit buyersguide.ciubindustry.com for more information on this advertiser.

38 • CLUB INDUSTRY.COM | April 2013

THE LEADER IN MIND BODY FITNESS EDUCATION SINCE 1994

seeks.

Selling YogaFit Club Seriesto International health club chains.

Must have industry contacts.

All inquires torobert@yogafit.conn

Visit buyersguide.ciubin(iustry.com for more information on this advertiser.

© 2013 Penton Media, Inc. All rights reserved.