Hilton’s new Five Feet to Fitness room promises to take in-room wellness to a whole new level. Jane Kitchen talks to the team behind the concept

Hospitality giant Hilton has unveiled a new in-room wellness concept, Five Feet to Fitness, which brings more than 11 different fitness equipment and accessory options into the hotel room and creates an upselling opportunity for the hotel operator. The move is part of Hilton’s efforts to modernise its fitness experience, while at the same time making it more inclusive. “We haven’t just placed workout equipment in a room, we’ve completely deconstructed the hotel room and carefully designed a space with an uncluttered training area, with sports-performance flooring and a separate area for rest and relaxation,” says Melissa Walker, global fitness director for Hilton.

Ryan Crabbe, who was senior director of global wellness for Hilton and led the team which launchd the concept, describes the room as an “industry first”. (Crabbe has since left Hilton to pursue an MBA and start his own consulting firm; see story, p 31).

“The room is really a personal wellbeing stage, but we like to describe it as a guestroom dedicated to movement and mindfulness,” says Crabbe. “It really is the first-of-its-kind hybrid room.”

The new room type features an indoor bike from British cycling innovator Wattbike, which can be used for either longer indoor-cycling type exercise sessions or focused interval-training workouts, and dynamic Gym Rax functional training stations to deliver strength, core, suspension and High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT). At the heart of the concept is the Fitness Kiosk, a touch-screen display embedded within the Gym Rax system, where guests receive equipment tutorials and follow guided workout routines.

“Travel can put a lot of stress on the body,” says Walker. “Making movement attainable makes for a better stay and a more productive trip. Our goal is to design environments that make hotel workouts uncomplicated and invigorating so travellers will be more inclined to keep fit.”

The room’s name is a play on the fact that it is literally five feet from a guest’s bed to the fitness space. The fitness area takes up around 100sq ft (9 sq m), positioned near the window, and features sports-performance flooring. “People need to run, move – and sweat – and you can’t do that on carpet,” says Crabbe.

Room extras
In partnership with Aktiv Solutions, Hilton has created more than 200 bespoke fitness videos in categories including cardio, cycling, endurance, strength, HIIT, yoga, stretch and recovery. “This creates an environment that’s suitable not just for fitness enthusiasts who already know how to use the equipment, but also for those guests who are interested in trying out a new skill or mixing up their regular routine,” explains Walker.

In the Five Feet to Fitness room, guests will also find a meditation chair, blackout shades for restorative sleep and Biofreeze products, designed to ease muscle tension.

Crabbe says the concept was inspired by a Cornell University study released last year that found 46 per cent of travellers say they want to work out while they’re at a hotel, but only around 20 per cent actually do. The study inspired Crabbe to do his own guest research. He found that a quarter of Hilton guests expressed interest in a dedicated in-room fitness concept.

Walker says: “We’ve been piloting in-room fitness concepts for five years now, and learned that guests love the convenience factor, but were hungry for more options. It got us thinking about a workout room with more flexibility, choice and control for guests.”

This, alongside the growing popularity of functional training, led to Hilton’s development of the concept.

Five Feet to Fitness has just made its debut at Parc 55 San Francisco and the Hilton McLean Tysons Corner in McLean, Virginia, and is an upgrade for a standard room, with customers paying around $US45 extra (€38, £34) per night. Owners that are interested in implementing the concept must commit to at least three Five Feet to Fitness rooms at their hotel, and the interest is there: additional Hilton hotels in Atlanta, Austin, Chicago, Las Vegas, New York and San Diego have already signed up.

The programme will launch initially in the US, but Crabbe says there’s “real potential for this to go global,” and that Hilton intentionally partnered with companies that have international distribution.

Five Feet to Fitness is just one of several new ways Hilton is addressing fitness. Providing Walk & Run Maps, making stairways a brighter, more appealing option and expanding outdoor fitness options like high-intensity group workouts and yoga are all part of the bigger fitness picture.

“I’ve found it’s easy to get stuck in the trap of believing you need a full 45-minute session at the gym to have a good workout, but this kind of thinking can be detrimental when you’re on the road and pressed for time,” says Walker. “I take the view that a workout can happen anytime, anywhere, and for however long you’ve got – the important thing is that you’re moving. We’re trying to create environments conducive to that, whether it’s taking the stairs, going for a 30-minute walk around the city centre, or doing a Pilates video on YouTube.”