A suite deal
New hotel with 'Zoom-ready' suites lands in booming Southeast Austin
A hotel featuring “Zoom ready” guestrooms is set to open later this year near Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Southeast Austin.
The Austin property is IHG Hotels and Resorts’ third Atwell Suites hotel in the U.S. The first two, in the Denver and Miami areas, are already open.
Owned by Bastrop-based Bob & Son Ltd., the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Austin Airport at 7601 E. Ben White Blvd. is being transformed into the new Atwell Suites property. State records show more than $1.3 million is being spent on the conversion.
Jessica Twine, a spokeswoman for IHG, says the hotel is supposed to open later this year, but an opening date hasn’t been set. IHG announced the project in July 2021.
The 80-room Atwell Suites in Austin is geared toward business and leisure travelers planning typical stays of four to six nights. One of the highlights is a two-story lobby containing The Common, a second-floor public space mixing private and shared areas. Amenities include complimentary breakfast, a bar, a pool, and a spa.
Furthermore, Twine says, guestrooms at Atwell hotels are “Zoom ready.”
“The Atwell Suites properties are ‘Zoom ready’ because instead of an unmade bed and luggage lingering in the background of a virtual call, guests can sit in front of an enticing gallery wall above their room’s sofa. It is a perfect backdrop in virtual meetings,” Twine says.
Aside from a gallery wall, each guestroom will offer a kitchenette, a 55-inch TV, a sofa bed, and a work area equipped with a desk.
IHG says more than 20 Atwell properties are being developed across the country. That includes one location in the Dallas-Fort Worth suburb of Euless and another in the Hill Country town of Kerrville, about 65 miles northwest of San Antonio.
“The Atwell Suites brand is tailor-made to meet the significant demand in the upper-midscale segment for a new all-suites brand,” says Keith Barr, CEO of IHG.
