A luxury extended-stay hotel chain will open more locations after skyrocketing in popularity during COVID-19 — see inside one of its high-end NYC locations

11:59 AM
The exterior of the AKA Hotels Central Park building among other buildings.

Brittany Chang/Insider

  • Luxury extended stay hotel chain Aka Hotels and Hotel Residences saw its strongest year in 2021.
  • During COVID-19, Aka began accommodating a variety of guests like healthcare workers and college students.
  • The chain, which operates 12 locations, wants to open 20 properties in the next two to three years.
Leisure travel has continued its meteoric recovery amid COVID-19, but one segment of the travel industry has yet to see this same full comeback: corporate travel.
The rooftop lounge at AKA Central Park with views of other buildings.

AKA

Business travel — and the companies that cater to this — is still recovering as it batters waves of COVID-19, the rise of remote work, and travel restriction.
Wall art hanging above a bed with two night stands. There's a lounge chair in the corner of the room.

Brittany Chang/Insider

Source: Insider

 

But extended stay hotels, once beloved by the corporate travel segment, have managed to successfully avoid this depression while maintaining their status as "ATMs with a roof" that "print money," Ryan Meliker, president of Lodging Analytics Research and Consulting, told Craig Karmin for the Wall Street Journal.
The exterior of the AKA Hotels Central Park building among other buildings.

Brittany Chang/Insider

Source: Wall Street Journal

 

And one chain, in particular, is doing this with a high-end flair: Aka Hotels and Hotel Residences.
The lobby of AKA with plexiglass, a check-in counter.

Brittany Chang/Insider

Aka isn't the type of hotel you'd stay at for a long weekend. Instead, it calls itself the "world's most livable hotel" with the intention of attracting guests for weeks to months at a time.
Wall art hanging above a bed with two night stands. A TV on a stand facing a bed next to a window.

Brittany Chang/Insider

Source: Aka 

Its locations are filled with luxuriously finished suites, private cocktail lounges, large gyms, and movie theaters …
Workout machines at the gym at AKA Central Park.

Brittany Chang/Insider

Source: Aka 

 

… all at around $250 to $400 a night for guests staying for several weeks.
A metal plate denoting the AKA Hotel Residences building.

Brittany Chang/Insider

It's pricier compared to the average hotel (extended stay or not) but so far, Aka has seen no problems attracting guests despite the lull in corporate travel.
A robe with the "aka" logo hanging on a door.

Brittany Chang/Insider

Business has been booming for the chain, which has locations throughout the US and one in London
A vase with tall white plants on a table next to two lounge chairs.

Brittany Chang/Insider

Despite the onset of COVID-19, in 2020, Aka saw a 140% increase in the length of stays compared to 2019, a spokesperson told Insider.
AKA Central Park's lounge with lounge seating.

Brittany Chang/Insider

And at the end of 2021, Aka's strongest locations like Miami and Los Angeles saw almost 90% occupancy rates, ringing in the brand's strongest year.
The living room with couches, seats, wall decor, a coffee table, and lights inside a suite at AKA Central Park.

Brittany Chang/Insider

From 2020 on, Aka no longer served as just a business traveler's home away from home.
The bar at AKA Central Park's lounge.

Brittany Chang/Insider

Now, the brand has become a getaway for domestic leisure travelers, a demographic that made up about half of its guests during the peak of COVID-19 into 2021, Larry Korman, the president of Aka told Insider in an interview.
Wall art hanging above a bed with two night stands.

Brittany Chang/Insider

Since the start of COVID-19, the chain has seen strong bookings from a wide variety of guests like families, healthcare workers, and wealthy college students who don't want to live in a dorm …
A marble bathroom with a sink, toilet, shower, vanity.

Brittany Chang/Insider

… film production companies, people going through divorces …
A gym with weights at AKA Central Park.

Brittany Chang/Insider

… and guests traveling for medical procedures, according to Korman.
A lounge chair in the corner of the room besides a mirror, nightstand, and bed.

Brittany Chang/Insider

And now, Aka is capitalizing on its booming business with plans to open about 20 locations in the next two to three years in both existing and new markets, whether it be in New York, California, Texas, or Arizona.
A label on the wall that says "a.lounge" next to a set of doors.

Brittany Chang/Insider

Let's take a closer look at its Central Park location, which "has done great and did well during the low point" of COVID-19, according to Korman.
Wall art hanging above a bed with two night stands.

Brittany Chang/Insider

Like other Aka locations, the Central Park outpost is lined with studios, penthouses, and one to three-bedroom suites.
The living room with couches, seats, wall decor, a coffee table, and lights inside a suite at AKA Central Park.

Brittany Chang/Insider

The large one-bedroom suites have all the furnishings and amenities to create a "home away from home" environment.
The living room with couches, seats, wall decor, a coffee table, and lights inside a suite at AKA Central Park.

Brittany Chang/Insider

There's a kitchen with typical appliances like a sink, oven, microwave, and stovetop …
The kitchen with an oven, stove, microwave, sink, and cabinets inside a suite at AKA Central Park.

Brittany Chang/Insider

… as well as a marble-filled bathroom with all the basic amenities.
A marble bathroom with a sink, toilet, shower, vanity.

Brittany Chang/Insider

Both the living room and bedroom are sizable compared to the average hotel room or New York City apartment ...
The living room with couches, seats, wall decor, a coffee table, and lights inside a suite at AKA Central Park.

Brittany Chang/Insider

… and include furniture and necessities like couches, televisions, WiFi, cable, and a dining table.
A circular table with two chairs and two prints hanging on the wall.

Brittany Chang/Insider

Other than the elaborate suites, Aka has several common spaces that set it apart from less luxurious extended stay accommodations.
Rows of workout machines at the gym at AKA Central Park.

Brittany Chang/Insider

The Central Park location has a 2,500-square-foot fitness center with a massage room, an eleven-seat movie theater, and laundry facilities.
The movie theater inside AKA Central Park.

AKA

There are also iMac stations, a grocery delivery service …
Mac desktops and keyboards on a long table with office chairs.

Brittany Chang/Insider

… a downstairs cafe, room service with meals from local restaurants …
The exterior of the AKA Hotels Central Park building among other buildings.

Brittany Chang/Insider

Source: Wall Street Journal

 

… and a cocktail lounge accessible only by Aka residents.
The bar at AKA Central Park's lounge.

Brittany Chang/Insider

These extra amenities and common spaces are what attracted Aka's budding leisure travel segment during COVID-19, according to Korman.
A gym with machines and weights at AKA Central Park.

Brittany Chang/Insider

"I think the reason we're getting higher occupancy and higher rates now than we ever have is because the world is recognizing the advantages of residences," Korman said. "That's something I attribute domestically to Airbnb."
The living room with couches, seats, wall decor, a coffee table, and lights inside a suite at AKA Central Park.

Brittany Chang/Insider

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