Home Away From Home

More hotels are asking business travelers to come on in and stay awhile. Both major hotel chains and companies that specialize in extended-stay lodgings-hotels that cater to longer-term travelers and typically charge by the week-have plans to establish more extended-stay properties within the coming year.

"With the shortage of hotel rooms and cases where travelers want to stay for two or three weeks, people in the industry believe extended-stay lodgings are really in need," explains Robert Nozar, editor-in-chief of Hotel & Motel Management magazine.

Extended-stay lodgings have a lot to offer business travelers who attend conferences, work on short-term projects or take lengthy trips. For one, they're more affordable than pricey luxury hotels. Unlike economy lodgings, they offer a kitchen complete with refrigerator, microwave and dinnerware. Plus, with traditional hotels cutting back on personal amenities these days, most also have oversized towels, built-in hairdryers and other personal-care items to their advantage, says Nozar.

A few hotels that are expanding in the extended-stay sector include Extended Stay America and Choice Hotels, through its new Mainstay Suites, which opened in October. Holiday Inn also expects to make its entry into the extended-stay market by year-end.

This article was originally published in the December 1996 print edition of Entrepreneur with the headline: Home Away From Home.