Historic Hotels Need to Flaunt Their Best Attributes

When writing about travel and hospitality, a lot of time is spent dissecting the shiny and new. Much time is spent looking at concept brands, analyzing bleeding edge tech or shifting cultural trends, plus vetting the startups that are trying to redefine how we move from one place to the other.

But lately, I have been thinking about other hidden differentiators that hotels aren’t always playing up, as well: The timeless things under the hood, and the latent differentiators that can stand out to a certain audience.

History is one of them and it is critically underused. In contrast to the sparkling new, there’s something wonderful about a hotel that has stood the test of time, that has been a witness to historical events and makes guests feel like they are part of something bigger. There’s a magic feeling when it is done well.

These grand hotels have a sense of place, purpose, and feeling that imbue them with something more meani