Affluent guests are increasingly likely to book a hotel based on the availability of wellness facilities such as a spa or yoga classes, according to a survey by PoB Hotels.
Half of respondents said wellness facilities were ‘somewhat or very important' to them when booking a hotel.
Almost one in four (24%) emerging and high-net-worth (HNW) individuals, defined as people with investible assets worth more than £500,000, said these services were ‘very important'.
The findings were published in PoB's first whitepaper, which was based on a survey of 3,100 people, including 200 affluent and HNWI, by wealth insights brand Altiant in September. A further 2,900 UK respondents were sampled from PoB's database.
Kalindi Juneja, chief executive officer of PoB, told The Caterer the broader definition of wellness in recent years had opened up more opportunities for hotels to diversify their guest experiences.
"I don't think it's [just] a spa break anymore," she said.
"Wellness is also quite personal. For example, we've got hotels that do forest bathing, yoga mats in bedrooms, or that take people foraging. At some properties it's eating or drinking a particular dish, at another it is having a particular treatment. Wellness can be achieved with whatever space you have. There are so many variations."
Roughly 70% of PoB's 54 hotels have a spa.
"A key element that people are hoping for out of a UK break is that even when they are going for one night, they want to be able to switch off immediately," Juneja added.
"It's been challenging for hoteliers over the last couple of years to staff the spas, but we're in a much better place now across the board and the demand for wellness and treatments has remained really high."
Juneja said spas also offered hotels a chance to attract local clientele through membership programmes.
"Lucknam Park and Calcot Spa all have external memberships as well. It's a key element for a hotel, particularly during quieter periods."