And at the Four Seasons Boston, the future is already here.
(Bloomberg) — Welcome to Bloomberg Pursuits Amenity Watch, where we look at the exciting (and sometimes ridiculous) perks at luxury hotels.
We’ve all been there. The setting is a luxury hotel. The hour? That perfect midway point between lunch and dinner. Stomachs are growling. The kids are complaining. So is your partner.
Enter the Vault, a new amenity at the Four Seasons Hotel Boston that troubleshoots the midday munchies—letting you preserve that perfect sliver of time to kick up your feet before your evening plans, without blowing your appetite (or budget) on room service.
Open 24/7, the Vault is a free-for-all pantry on each of the hotel’s six guest-room floors, filled with unlimited snacks, sweets and beverages—all complimentary and accessible with your room key card. They are walk-in pantries marked by a large gold sign and packed wall-to-wall with treats for the taking. But each Vault has its own unique decor: On the fourth floor, day-glow neon spaceships swirl on the wallpaper; the seventh-floor room is lined with images of Benjamin Franklin blowing bubblegum bubbles.
The offerings vary from indulgent (M&Ms, Swedish Fish, potato chips and giant dispensers of Jelly Bellys) to healthy-ish (50%-less-salt roasted cashews and almonds, Himalayan pink salt popcorn and mixed dried fruit). Beverages also span a wide range: A choose-your-own soda fountain dispenses the usual options, plus still and sparkling water that can be blended with natural and artificial flavors such as watermelon or strawberry lemongrass.
“It was important to [General Manager] Michael Pedder that we create unique offerings for all of our guests—especially kids,” Brianna Roberts, Four Seasons Hotel Boston’s digital marketing and communications manager, told Bloomberg on a recent property tour. “The Vaults have been our most popular addition so far.”
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For now, the Vaults are exclusive to the Four Seasons Hotel Boston. But their popularity hasn’t gone unnoticed by the brand at large. “We expect that other Four Seasons properties may adopt similar concepts,” says Crissa Hiranaga, the hotel’s senior director of public relations and communications.
The debut of the Vaults coincides with the Boston hotel’s May reopening, following a multimillion-dollar gut renovation of its public spaces by interior designer Ken Fulk.
Already the property has made tweaks to perfect the formula. “We had a lot of requests for healthier options, so we replaced some of the candy with nuts and dried fruit,” Roberts says. Overall, the response has been overwhelmingly positive: “We are finding they need to be restocked daily, often multiple times.”
The Vaults have not replaced minibars—which continue to sell many classic offerings, including alcohol (something you won’t find in the pantries). But the new, entirely gratis amenity is proving more popular among guests. “Many [minibars] go unused,” Hiranaga told Bloomberg via email, adding that the shift in usage has also made for an improved guest experience. “The addition of the Vaults allows us to minimize disruptions in the rooms.”
Overall, designer Fulk’s fantastical style lends itself well to whimsical, kid-friendly features. Walk into the redone lobby, for instance, and it’s impossible to miss the new custom mural behind the marble-topped reception desk—its impressionist swans and willows draw inspiration from the Public Garden just outside. Less obvious is a new, walk-in Mystery Closet hidden behind one of its wall panels. Unlocked with an oversize key presented at check-in, the purple room is brimming with toys, games and crafts. Children are allowed to choose one, free of charge.
Read More: The Best Hotels For Family Vacations
Also new: A Marroquin-style red telephone booth in the hotel’s Sanctuary garden terrace, where kids and kids at heart can ring up the kitchen for a burger and fries, chicken fingers or anything else from the room service menu. (The relatively subdued 273 rooms and suites, which were last renovated in 2017, remain unchanged.)
The new perks are proof that catering to youngsters can really appease adults, too—though none more than the snack vaults. Roberts says they’re commonly being used to stock up for in-room movie nights. Others, she adds, consider it a grab-and-go option before a day of exploring. On our recent visit, my partner and I, traveling sans kids, grabbed M&Ms and dried fruit for the perfect 4 p.m. cure. But as we discovered, they can lead to another problem: the late-night sugar high. Use responsibly.
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