Travelodge opened its third hotel at the UK’s second busiest airport, Gatwick, on the 29th January 2014.
Crawley Travelodge is a 110-room new build property with six floors. It represents a £7 million investment and has created 20 new jobs within the local community. The hotel is located on Pegler Way in Crawley, which is less than five miles from Gatwick Airport.To help create a warm and cosy ambiance in the new room so that customers obtain a good quality night’s sleep, Travelodge worked with a chromotherapy expert and has introduced a sleep inducing colour palette to the room’s décor. The feature wall has been painted a tranquil blue, as research shows our body clock is programmed to relate the colour blue to the hours of darkness. So when we look at the colour blue, our metabolism slows down, making us feel relaxed and sleepy.
Other additions to the new room include a stylish white contemporary en-suite bathroom with a power shower, stain & water resistant carpet in a dark shade of blue, a larger desk area, new reading lights and a phone charging socket built into the bed frame. The room also includes artwork above the bed. This is an abstract design featuring relaxing sparkles and shades of blue, which customers found very pleasing to the eye and restful.
The new hotel is being managed by Andrina Wooler who started working at Travelodge as a part-time night receptionist in 2008.
Andrina Wooler, Crawley Hotel Manager said: “I am so thrilled to be managing Crawley’s first Travelodge hotel in such a prime location. There is a growing demand for good quality, low cost accommodation in the area, as getting value for money is hugely important for consumers in today’s market. As a result, we are ideally placed to be the smart choice for business and leisure travellers.
“By attracting new visitors to the area, this hotel will annually boost the local economy by £1.2 million, as our research shows the average Travelodge customer will spend on average £36 in local businesses during their stay.
“The hotel has got off to a flying start and there is no doubt that our new room design has had a great impact on sales. Customer feedback has been phenomenal, especially in relation to the Travelodge Dreamer Bed and the overall enhanced new experience.”
The hotel’s new team of 20 staff members have all been recruited via the Job Centre Plus Scheme – which helps the long term unemployed back into work. As part of their induction training, staff members undertook a comprehensive four week training programme at a nearby Travelodge hotel. They also attended a sleep seminar to ensure they are fully equipped to ensure their customers get a good night’s sleep.
