ROCKVILLE, MD—Cambria Hotels, an upscale brand franchised by Choice Hotels International has launched its first-ever podcast series, “Travel Inspired With Cambria Hotels.”
The original series, hosted by Janis Cannon, SVP, upscale brands, Choice Hotels, and Rick Hertan, director, Cambria Hotels brand management, explores the topics travelers value most while on the road and the ways in which Cambria hotels are carefully designed to cater to those priorities with approachable indulgences and customizable guest experiences. The podcast, which includes six mini-episodes meant to provide inspiration and help busy, on-the-go travelers to navigate the new travel landscape, are free to consumers and available to stream now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, RadioPublic, Stitcher, Pandora, iHeart and Google Podcasts.
“With COVID, people are at home and they have a lot of time poverty,” Cannon told Hotel Business. “We are all being stretched more than we have ever been before between doing our jobs from home, trying to support our families, be there for them emotionally as well as workwise… We are seeing that there are more people listening on digital devices now than ever before. Pre-COVID, about 45% of people 13-plus were listening on digital devices. In Q2, that number rose to 53%.”
She continued, “We thought that it would be a great time for us to do a podcast series that was really focused on our guests and prospective travelers, with some snackable content that would be both inspirational as well as simple—easy to digest and which doesn’t take a long time.”
Cannon and Hertan provide a look into how Cambria hotels are designed to reflect local destinations and immerse guests in the essence of the city. Topics include the following:
- Maximizing time and relaxation with purposeful design
- The importance of creating a sense of space and place
- Unwinding with spa-like comforts
- Hosting successful business meetings at Cambria Hotels in compliance with guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and local regulations
- Experiencing local culture without leaving the hotel
- Tasting the city through locally inspired cuisine
“As we were putting together the podcast overall, really we were thinking about it as guests were traveling again and continue to travel, we wanted to really inspire them, help them dream about their best travel adventure,” said Hertan. “It is related to their own personal lives and their unique preferences when they travel specifically. It is about inspiring them for the future when they are dreaming of that next destination that they are going to. That is what we are really trying to get to, is that next stay, that future stay, as they are staying at home and they are consuming more content than they ever have before. They are thinking about what travel will look like in the future. We are helping solidify what that dream is at the end of the day.”
Cannon and Hertan also discuss how Cambria’s design elements elevate modern travelers’ stays and how the brand has implemented changes to the layouts of communal spaces as part of Choice Hotels’ Commitment to Clean, an initiative that builds upon the strong foundation of franchisees’ long-standing dedication to cleanliness with enhanced training and best practices for deep cleaning, disinfecting and social distancing.
“Part of our podcast is also getting the word out about how the hotel experience has evolved based on today’s needs,” said Cannon. “It is also about how we redefined our public areas and our lobby spaces. We have created spaces that we are calling cocoons. They’ll still be in public areas, but they are more delineated and they are a little bit more secluded. The way that the furniture is arranged in the lobby, it allows you to have the sense of safety and security, and it communicates this value of cleanliness and, at the same time, you are better protected. Those are the results of us really evolving our guest experience based on the changing needs of today’s traveler.”
