Innovation That Matters

Twitter the front desk at playful new Maastricht hotel

Travel & Tourism

A midnight snack in 140 characters? Guests at a new Maastricht hotel won’t have to leave their Twitter stream if they’re feeling peckish—they can just tweet their requests to the front desk, @townhousehotels. (Correction: It turns out that the hotel doesn’t offer room service, but serves breakfast, soup and light snacks for guests who are unwilling to make their way to one of the city’s many restaurants.) Offering Twitter as an in-hotel communication tool is just one of the innovative elements at the Townhouse Hotel Maastricht, which is set to open in September. We previously covered the venture when it was still mysteriously known as Hotel X and piqued our curiosity by buying armchairs and alarm clocks from consumers. Building and decoration are still in progress, but the hotel’s identity is taking shape, and it appears to be a timely combination of technology, affordability and personality. As boutique hotels have become near-ubiquitous, the appeal of their polished design is losing its lustre. No surprise, then, that a counter-trend is building: hotels are aiming for a more memorable stay by combining style with personality. As indicated by how it sourced vintage furniture from local homes and attics, the Townhouse Hotel is choosing idiosyncratic charm and playfulness over showroom finesse, while keeping the technological perks that travellers have grown accustomed to. Adding to its sense of realness, Townhouse Hotel will recruit ‘citizen models’ for their premier ad campaign. Like the similarly quirky Mama Shelter in Paris, Townhouse Hotel Maastricht is priced for high occupancy rates: prices at the 69-room hotel will start at EUR 75.

Email: info@townhousehotels.nl

Website: www.townhousehotels.nl

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