Newly formed hotel group citizenM, has revealed plans for its first property, set to open early 2008 near Amsterdam”s Schiphol airport.
The hotel will provide 230 rooms at a starting price of ”69 (”47) per night, using the slogan: ”Affordable luxury for the people.”
Rooms are of modern design, focussing on simplicity, comfort and functionality: super king-size beds, quality linen, hi-tech showers, light, and sophisticated technology.
Affordability is a key focus of the hotel group, with the aim of eliminating hidden costs. Internet access and movies on-demand are free of charge. Calls to international landlines are also complementary.
”The result is a quality hotel experience for an affordable price, tailored to meet the expectations of today's modern traveller,” said a spokesperson for citizenM.
CitizenM is short for ”citizen mobile”: "sophisticated travellers, people who value personal choice, contemporary design, friendly technology and the proximity to a city," said citizenM CEO, Michael Levie.
The hotel group has partnered with Concrete (architects) and Philips and Vitra (designers) to put together the concept.
”Inspired by accommodation on luxury yachts and private jets, citizenM built its own factory in order to realise its high quality hotel rooms,” said a citizenM spokesperson. ”Each room is 14 square metres and has been carefully thought through to offer the height of functional design.”
Rooms can be customised while making a web-reservation, at the self check-in kiosks, or on the touch screen ”mood pad” in the room. Personal settings include: preferred lighting, music, temperature and a wake-up call.
Each guest receives a key card which stores the information required to adjust the rooms to their preferences. The key card stays active and remembers personal profiles for the next stay.
Dining facilities can be found at canteenM ” which provides 24h sandwiches, salads, sushi and warm dishes ” and at the in-house bar, whose staff includes professionally trained baristas.
Headquartered in Amsterdam, citizenM's founders include professionals from both the hospitality and fashion industry, namely: Rattan Chadha (founder and former CEO of Mexx, director and partner of Oberoi Hotels & Resorts); Jan Wulf van Alkemade (hotel specialist); Tom Bas (former member of the board of directors of NH Hotels and Golden Tulip); and Michael Levie (former executive and vice president of Operations of Sonesta and NH Hotels).
CitizenM”s second hotel will open towards the end of 2008, near Amsterdam city centre. The company has plans for a rapid European expansion, with 20 hotels to be opened throughout Europe in its initial roll-out phase. Included are major cities such as: London, Glasgow, Barcelona, Berlin, Milan, Brussels and Copenhagen.
Bookings for citizenM”s Amsterdam Schiphol airport hotel are due to start on 31 October.