The Baiting Game
Eager to fill their rooms, local hotels are throwing in unexpected extras like Etch A Sketches, limo rides, and dog biscuits. But, bargain hunters, beware.
The Onyx Hotel no longer promotes its association with Britney Spears. When Spears, the pop-fizz diva, canceled her Onyx Hotel Tour last June and took up with a Chihuahua and a whozit husband in clown pants, the bloom went off the Britney marketing rose. Although Boston's Onyx still maintains its 10th-floor "Britney's Bedroom," a flouncy boudoir designed by Spears's mother, Lynne, the hotel doesn't heavily advertise the $349 suite. The Onyx has moved on - from tart to art.
In February, the boutique hotel on Portland Street began offering an "Emerging Artist" package for $259 a night, designed to tie in with the Onyx's lobby exhibits of the works by Copley Society artists. The connect-the-dots incentive features a deluxe room supplied with a mini Etch A Sketch, an instant camera, and drawing supplies. Without the flourishes, a guest room with a king-size bed can be had for $209 a night.
As of this writing, the Onyx hasn't had any takers for the package, according to spokeswoman Erika Schermerhorn. She stresses that the promotion, which continues until December 31, is still a new perk. But stocks of Pocket Etch A Sketches ($7.95 if you bought one yourself), Polaroid i-Zone cameras ($9.99), colored pencils ($12), and sketch pads ($2.99) are in house and ready to provide inspiration to a budding Vincent Van Gogh. (The painter, by the way, infamously cut off his ear while staying in a boarding house at Arles. A profound mystique surrounds hotels and brooding artists.)
Less profound is the Onyx's motive to distinguish itself with an offer designed for not-so-starving creative types but also suitable for children who like to doodle. Actually, the "Emerging Artist" appeals to anybody tickled by the idea of checking in to a hotel and getting a bunch of trendy trinkets. "The bottom line is: Many consumers want value," says Arthur Canter, president of the Massachusetts Lodging Association, a trade group. "We're not talking rate here, we're talking value. That's why hotels are being creatively clever in their packaging."
"For the consumer, buying a package is no different than buying a car with options," says Gary Leopold, president of ISM, a Newbury Street travel consulting firm.
And many Boston hotels, still recovering from an industry plunge after September 11, 2001, come fully loaded. At Nine Zero, another boutique hotel on Tremont Street, packages carry the prefix "in." Such as: "In Spire," dinner and breakfast at Spire, the hotel restaurant; "In Dulge," chocolate-covered strawberries and rose-petal turndown; "In Genuity," museum passes; "In the Doghouse," a biscuit, bowls, and a bed for your dog; and "In Heaven," costing $3,990 per night for two in the penthouse, with meals, beauty consultations, massages, personal shopping, limo service, and a private butler.
A clever scheme is "Summer Meltdown" at the Colonnade Hotel. Starting on Memorial Day, guests checking in on a Friday pay $1 for every degree of the 5 p.m. temperature reading by the National Weather Service for the first night of a mandatory two-night stay. (The second night is the full price of $229.) Air conditioning has its price.
"Some of [the packages] do represent good value, but you have to be a smart consumer and make that decision for yourself," says Leopold. "Is somebody offering a package that entitles you to something that could be priceless? Or do you get your room, a can of tennis balls, and a T-shirt? Is it a good rate?"
Monica Collins writes biweekly. E-mail her at mcollins@globe.com. 