Who is best suited to long stays in UAE.

The serviced apartment sector – or long stay accommodation – is starting to make a large impact on the accommodation sector for corporate travel. In fact serviced apartments are now so popular in certain cities, they’re outperforming hotels. So what’s driving the ‘staying power’ of this more relaxed style of accommodation?

What is long stay accommodation?

Long or extended stay properties typically specialise in accommodation ranging from one week to three months, however, in some cases the length of stay can extend into many months.

They generally include the following types of properties:

Hotels – Long stay hotels offer extended stays and fully equipped rooms with kitchenettes, ideal for business travelers or families. This accommodation option saves on dining costs, offers additional amenities like laundry and fitness centers, and sometimes free breakfast and shuttles. Overall, long stay hotels aim to provide all the comforts of home while offering the convenience of a hotel.

Extended Stay Hotels

Long stay hotels are becoming increasingly popular as more people choose them as an ideal choice for extended stays. The benefits of choosing a long stay hotel are manifold. The most significant advantage is the affordability of staying at such a hotel. Long stay hotels usually offer all-inclusive packages that are cheaper than short term stays or renting an apartment. This is because they provide amenities such as utilities, Wi-Fi, breakfast, and laundry services that are often separate costs in other forms of accommodation.

Apart from cost-saving benefits, long-stay hotels offer practicality, making them suitable for business travellers who need a particular location for work or study. The hotels come equipped with workspaces and kitchenettes that allow you to stay productive and focused in a comfortable space. Moreover, the majority of long-stay hotels are located in prime travel destinations such as urban centres, which makes it easier to explore different regions without compromising on your accommodation needs. Ultimately, long-stay hotels offer guests practicality, convenience, and affordability, making them an excellent choice for extended stays of a week or two.

Rethinking hotel spaces with long stay accommodation

Long stays have become one of the biggest trends in hospitality during the last two years. In their Report on Travel & Living, Airbnb mentions the share of long stays (reservations longer than 28 nights) increased from 14% in 2019 to 24% in 2021. Companies like Sonder built their entire post-covid business strategy around extended stays. The Social Hub has closed a massive €300M funding round to expand its concept, blurring lines between hotel and student accommodation around Europe. And of course, we at Mews have been betting on long stays with our development.

Early in 2021, we described our vision for a hybrid model of hospitality, offering various services in various time frames, all of them supported by a single system. What have we learned about the long stay vertical since then? Let us share it with you.

The value and the resilience of long stay business

Reading about these trends and company strategies, one might be wondering: “Is it really a good idea to start offering long-term accommodation?” To this, we say yes! It’s a great idea. We’ve even got the data to back it up.

Cancellation rate data

First, we looked at the resilience of long stay business and compared cancellation rates for stays of 1-7 days with those longer than 27 days in countries recently impacted by strict covid measures. Specially, this data covers Austria, the Netherlands, and Germany in 2021 between July 1 and the end of the year. Measures such as closed non-essential shops, restaurants and bars were introduced in the second half of November 2021 in these countries.

The cancellation rate shown below is calculated as reservations cancelled/reservations created in each week. The first graph shows long stay reservations, the second shows short stays.

What does the chart tell us? Guests booking stays longer than 27 days are much less likely to let Covid measures change their decision to travel. These people are very often relocating for business or studies and once they book their stay, it’s likely that they will actually arrive. For short term stays, the cancellation rate in these countries is currently three times higher. Put plainly, people will cancel their weekend trip to Amsterdam because of Covid measures, but they won’t cancel their job or university studies.