Hotel Trends: Iced Tea is the New Water and the Spa Nap

(MoneyWatch)  It's close to the end of the year, so that means a few things -- mainly that consultants are spotting trends. Several of the new trends hitting hotels and spas are old chestnuts likes improving customer service (duh!) but Andrew Freeman & Co. offered a few high-profile ideas such as bringing "reality TV to real life" via a Sommelier Smackdown or Deathmatch, a Portland, Maine tradition of local chefs pitting their culinary expertise against one another.

Another trend was giving guests freebies to keep them happily on the premises drinking profit-laden beverages -- such as a pizza happy hour or DVD rentals (also extend happy hours.) Guests also seem to want a little fresh air, so hotels can also create outdoor areas even in urban settings like rooftop gardens or small plazas, using them for outdoor massages or communal areas. The consulting company also suggested that hotels save money by focusing on simple elegance and less in-room amenities.

Andrew Freeman, president of the agency, also said that hotel fare will turn to retro classics like green goddess dressing, retro sodas, deviled eggs and cassoulet. Think what Mad Men's Betty Draper might serve. And in keeping with wild contradictory statements, Freeman said that Sriracha is the new salsa and Vietnamese food is now mainstream. But my favorite line was: "Iced tea is the new water."

The International SPA Association also released their trend findings, pushing much of their resources towards Gen Y, or Millenials, who have grown up using spas:

They grew up in a culture where taking care of themselves, learning proper grooming techniques and leading a healthy lifestyle were not options, but the norm.

By using social media, spas and resorts hope to attract those pampered kids. Spas in the recession are seen as purveyors of stress relief rather than luxury so they will begin to market themselves that way. That means offering spa samplers to new clients and concentrating on the new "Beauty Rest" movement -- basically cat naps at the spa. The new spa nap is a way to relax the stressed and sleep-deprived by pairing a treatment with rest.

I think some of the trends have legs, including the sleep spas in tony, urban areas where stressed-out working moms need a time-out. I also welcome the iced tea trend since most tap water is too chlorinated to be palatable. Some of the ideas are low-cost, such as working with local experts who will give cheap/free demonstrations or talks to guests or offering minor freebies to guests (which can ensure loyalty.) While some of the idea are borderline creepy (such as pre-loading digital images of family photographs in a room for returning guests) most are common sense ways to do business: provide a customer with better service and they will return.