Rebecca Hollants Van Loocke
With the EU open border policy, relocation within Europe is a trend set to grow. The country attracting the largest number of migrants moving within EU is Germany, with almost 30 % choosing to go there in 2012. It's no wonder, then, that Germany has one of the fastest growing apart'hotel sectors in Europe. Providers are recognising this drift and more and more properties are now opening in central Europe.
Relocation in the short-term when travelling on business can be a tricky area to negotiate. Short-term leases can be complicated to arrange and staying at a hotel is far from ideal. Living out of a suitcase and eating out can be an expensive drag and not as convenient as perhaps previously thought for any longer than a week.
If you look carefully, right in the middle ground you will find the solution to this conundrum: the apart'hotel. Flexible and cost effective, apart'hotels offer the home-from-home comforts of a private apartment with some of the extras that you would find at a hotel. The added benefit of having your own kitchen saves money and offers convenience whilst the extra security of a reception and extra facilities such as a gym and communal areas are added extras you get above and beyond going private.
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It seems that in Europe, where the industry is fairly new, having only really become established 30 years ago, the idea of apart'hotels is catching on. Europe is now the second largest apart'hotel industry in the world after the US as people have begun to realise the benefits.
- Rebecca Hollants Van Loocke is country general manager for the UK, Germany and Georgia for The Ascott Limited