Hotel guests 'want a luxurious experience'

Ahead of the reopening of the Savoy in London, the Independent's John Walsh has argued that extravagant accommodation will always maintain a place in people's hearts.

While standard hotel rooms may feature nothing out of the ordinary, the hotel supplies on offer in more luxurious surroundings can turn a stay into an experience in its own right, he argued.

"We still want to be astonished by luxury, blitzed by sensation, pampered by professional pamperers. It's hard-wired into our natures to put ourselves in the hands of others and ask them to amaze us," he said.

He noted that while hotels should have suffered in the recession, recent findings from PwC suggest that those which offer a perceived value are continuing to perform well.

Widening the range of hotel supplies on offer in hotel rooms is one way that some have managed to keep guests interested, the writer suggested, noting that in Manhattan, offerings such as different pillows or duvets proved to be one route to success.

The Savoy is set to reopen on October 10th.