On Wednesday Hilton Worldwide launched a website to assist Hilton Hotels & Resorts brand hotel owners with their properties’ design process and unveiled closet and tech center design concepts.
The Hilton Design Studio website currently offers hotel design tools for the Americas, and other regions will be added later. Access is the site is restricted and requires registration.
The site offers users a guided experience to explore the Hilton’s latest lobby and guestroom designs and an interactive “design a guestroom” component built on brand-approved specifications and three style palettes — classic, transitional and modern. The real-time process allows users to quickly choose their guest room layout, style and color palettes, furniture, fixtures and equipment, flooring and artwork via renderings.
“You see a lot of earth tones, natural tones,” said Dave Horton, global head, Hilton Hotels & Resorts. “Really vibrant colors on things that are real permanent, that’s a bad idea.”
Hilton held a media event for the site’s launch on Wednesday at the Hilton McLean Tysons Corner, located across from the Hilton Worldwide headquarters in McLean, Virginia. At the event Horton emphasized that the site is not intended to replace designers but meant to be an educational tool for owners to use.
“This is an online tool to help designers and hotel owners understand what we mean by the Hilton DNA,” said Horton. “It is an educational tool to help the design process.”
With the site came the unveiling of Hilton Valet, a new closet concept that features a multifunctional armoire that includes a built-in ironing board and power outlet for an iron, an “unfolding” closet space, a built-in luggage rack, a safe for valuables positioned at standing height, and a refrigerator and coffee/tea service that slide into drawers.
“You pick up 8 to 10 in (20 to 25 cm) in a room with the Valet. All of a sudden that entryway has more room,” said Horton. “It doesn’t fit in existing closets. We’re not saying you have to rip out all our closets, but in many cases I’ll say this — if it’s an old bathroom and you’re going to gut the bathroom anyway, to gut the closet as well, it’s not a big expense.”
The Hilton Valet has not been installed in any hotels yet, and Horton said it will be an option, not a required feature in Hilton rooms going forward.
Hilton also unveiled its Hilton Connectivity Station, the first level of its new three-level technology centers for guests to utilize. The Hilton Connectivity Station features a large table with desktop computers. The second level is the larger Technology Lounge, one of which is already installed at the Hilton McLean Tysons Corner. The third level, a technology library, is being installed at the Hilton Milan.