Sumner Bage, head of boutique resort hotel operator Caribbean Clubs International, said: 'The spa industry is one of the hot markets in our industry right now. We can't have an outstanding resort without a spa.'Michael Flaxman, managing direcotr for the UK & Ireland, central and eastern Europe for Accor Hotels, agreed. 'Five-star hotels really need a spa', he said.
Jan Roersma, managing director of consultancy the Hospitality Support Group, claimed the conversion of cruise ships into hotels would be another major trend.'We have seen a lot of cruise ships coming out of active service and getting turned into hotels', he said.
Roersma added that his company was just starting work on converting an old cruise ship into a floating hotel and that there was a lot of potential for more.Flaxman disagreed. He said floating hotels were too unusual for most guests and would not be a sustainable business.
'I don't believe in them', he said. 'They're a bit too quirky at the moment. If you had to choose between a conventional hotel and a boat hotel, you would probably choose conventional. The novelty factor does not sustain a business.'
Sumner Bage, head of boutique resort hotel operator Caribbean Clubs International, said: 'The spa industry is one of the hot markets in our industry right now. We can't have an outstanding resort without a spa.'Michael Flaxman, managing direcotr for the UK & Ireland, central and eastern Europe for Accor Hotels, agreed. 'Five-star hotels really need a spa', he said.
Jan Roersma, managing director of consultancy the Hospitality Support Group, claimed the conversion of cruise ships into hotels would be another major trend.'We have seen a lot of cruise ships coming out of active service and getting turned into hotels', he said.
Roersma added that his company was just starting work on converting an old cruise ship into a floating hotel and that there was a lot of potential for more.Flaxman disagreed. He said floating hotels were too unusual for most guests and would not be a sustainable business.
'I don't believe in them', he said. 'They're a bit too quirky at the moment. If you had to choose between a conventional hotel and a boat hotel, you would probably choose conventional. The novelty factor does not sustain a business.'
