How does interior design make you feel?
Regardless of whether you’re at home, in the office, staying at a hotel, or attending an evening or meal out, the setting that surrounds you plays a huge part in how you feel.
And that’s what we’re going to discuss in this article: how hotel interior design in particular can shape the guest experience and their perception of their stay.
Why is interior design important in hotels?
When you visit a hotel, interior design is the thing which connects the functional use of a space with the aesthetic details that make it memorable for all the right reasons. Interior design seeks out what a room or space needs and brings it to life in a way which links back to that theme of the hotel and the kind of experience that you want guests to enjoy.
To put it in the simplest terms, interior design is what balances the practical design of your space with the creation of an environment that you want to spend time in. And when it comes to guest perception, both of these things matter in equal measure.
Deciding how you want your guests to feel during their stay
Now that we know a bit more about the role of interior design in bringing a hotel theme to life, it’s time to start connecting your hotel business with the guest experience that you want to create.
The role of colour in interior design
Colour is often the first place that hotel designers start, focussing on colour psychology in both the communal spaces and the individual hotel rooms throughout the site. Colour psychology informs us of the way that different colours make us feel, and underpins a concept which is used across marketing, cooking, branding, and so much more.
From a design perspective, colour impacts the atmosphere and mood of a space. Red is an intensely passionate colour and is often reserved for bedrooms, while blue is a relaxing colour that lends itself to living spaces, white is the colour of cleanliness ideal for bathrooms, and green is a nice natural colour for your kitchen.
When designing your hotel, think about how you want guests to perceive a space and how you want them to feel, then find the colour that reflects that emotion.
The role of layout and structural features
It’s very easy to focus all of your attention on colour and accessories when influencing the guest experience – but you must not overlook the role of your room’s layout and how guests move throughout a space.
From the hotel lobby to the individual bedrooms, guests will be looking for a clear path of movement from point A to point B, with furnishings carefully placed to support the experience and their “journey” through your hotel.
This means having signage in all the right places, installing chairs in areas where guests are often left waiting for something, and ensuring that your bedrooms have all of the expected furnishings that guests need when staying overnight.
And remember, a well planned space and a thoughtful layout will enhance the availability of space rather than making a room feel smaller – which is ideal for more compact hotels.
The role of your hotel brand in shaping the guest perception
To really understand this point, you need to think about a hotel or restaurant that you visit regularly and will always return to when you have an opportunity to.
What is it about that venue or business that keeps you coming back?
Whatever the answer, that’s what you need to capture among your own hotel guests.
Hotel brand loyalty comes from the connectivity between an experience which is comfortable and one which is memorable and special. Guests want to know that when they stay at your hotel, they will be comfortable and will be treated in the way they want – with access to little luxuries that give your brand personality and flair.
Using interior design to support this brand personality, consider features like artwork, the access to amenities and onsite facilities, memorable details, and how you enhance the guest experience from check in through to their final moments onsite.
Interior design is a complex blend of practical, functional, comfortable, and decorative elements – all mixed together to create a space which is reflective of your brand, and which delivers an experience that guests will want to repeat time and time again.
For more advice on finessing your hotel’s interior spaces, get in touch with the Carroll Design team today.