Capitol Hill Suites

Hotels offer visitors a chance to snooze under the moonlight

Travelers can do that and more this summer as hotels offer experiences that make the most of the outdoors, from outside "bedrooms," to a camp-out on a back patio, to rooftop yoga.

"I've seen more hotels really focusing on adding outdoor spaces as another venue," says George Aquino, general manager of the JW Marriott Grand Rapids, which this spring added cabanas, firepits and even planters with edible plants to its riverfront deck. "Especially in the Midwest, we know that we only have a few months to maximize on it.… There's just something about being outside that's refreshing and rejuvenating. And guests love it."

The outdoor packages come at a time when an increasing number of business travelers are pursuing "blended travel," tacking on vacation days, often with their spouses and kids, to work trips. A 2010 study by Hilton's Homewood Suites found that 67% of frequent corporate travelers sometimes blended work with vacations. Hotels have been wooing those guests with perks ranging from enhanced fitness facilities to sightseeing tours.

Among the outdoor offerings:

•The AKA Central Park will give penthouse guests the chance to get a night's rest on a bed perched on a 900-square-foot wrap-around terrace. Wood-burning fireplaces and champagne are among the perks.

•Affinia Gardens, a hotel on Manhattan's Upper East Side, now offers tents and S'more-making kits to garden suite guests who want to camp out on their brick terraces.

•The Lorien Hotel & Spa, a Kimpton Hotel, in Alexandria, Va., has a "kids camp-out," in which young guests can take sleeping bags, lanterns, constellation maps and telescopes onto room terraces. There's a special menu, featuring grilled peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwiches and "all those kinds of things you'd try to do over a camp fire, but just coming from our kitchen," says Ben Timashenka, the Lorien's general manager.

An out-of-the-ordinary stay 

Hotels say they've spruced up outside spaces and added the programs to set themselves apart with unusual experiences that can attract a wider array of guests.

While common at resorts, "there's something unique about an outdoor experience in an urban environment," says John Moser, chief brand and marketing officer of Affinia Hotels . "Imagine having your own backyard in Manhattan. That's a really special thing. And then taking it to the next level. Think about when you were a kid and had a backyard and set up a tent and had S'mores and had fun with it. … People love the idea of camping out in the middle of New York City .

Expedia Changed our DC Hotel | United States Forum | Fodor's ...

Several weeks ago, we booked Capitol Hill Suites for August 4-7 through Expedia for a great rate of $67.00 per night. Got a call today from Expedia telling us Capitol HIll Suites could not accomodate us and that we would be relocated to the Homewood Suites at 1475 Mass. Avenue, at the same rate. However, I had specifically chosen the Capitol Hill Suites for its location -- good neighborhood near Library of Congress, the Capitol and a metro station.- as well as the great rate. Do you have any opinion on this Homewood Suites? Any suggestions and or comments are appreciated.

I will not use expedia anymore. They have screwed me over twice on airlines when changes have been made. Once on Delta and once on United. The carrier has asked me for my reciept instead of a boarding pass, they said they can't see that it has been paid for. This has happened on flights that were originally book on one carrier and then changed to another because of a major schedule change. I find it is much easier to book with who you are dealing with and forget the middleman. It is usually the exact same price anyway.

LONELY PLANET WASHINGTON, DC

Fodor's Washington, D.C. 2010, With Mount Vernon, Alexandria & Annapolis

Frommer's Irreverent Guide to Washington

Frommer's Washington, D.C. 2011

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