First a new hotel app allowed you to rent hotel rooms from major brands by the hour. Now there’s an app that lets you rent luxury hotel rooms by the minute.
The Recharge app, a product of JetBlue’s tech incubator, works like this:
Download the app for free on iPhone or Android, use it to find the hotel closest to you, and hit “book now.” Your billing cycle begins either 30 minutes after you’ve booked, or once you pick up your key, whichever comes first. The billing cycle ends when you hit “check out” on the app.
Stay for 51 minutes and you’re billed for 51 minutes (anyone caught staying after they’ve hit the button will be charged an overstay fee).
Where Can You Stay By The Minute?
The app has been available in San Francisco since 2015, and just expanded to New York City on April 24th 2017.
Currently, you can rent from 16 luxury properties including the Arlo, the Quin, the W and the Pierre — for exactly as long as you need the room.
What Are the Rates Like?
Prices range from $0.83 to $2.00 per minute (plus 14.75% lodging tax). That translates to between $20 and $46 for a power nap, or $57 to $128 for an hour to get ready for an event nearby, or $85 to $207 for a 90-minute stay to get some work done.
Who Stay By the Minute?
We’re all thinking it, but hoteliers say that most of their customers aren’t people after quickies in luxury accommodations. They’re red-eye fliers who just need a moment to freshen up.
According to Chief Executive Officer and founder Manny Bamfo of Recharge Labs, the app is already popular among long-distance commuters, traveling families and “We’ve been most surprised to see how useful it is for nursing mothers.”
The average length of stays using this app is around two hours.
Where Else Can I Stay Short Term?
Several apps help you stay short term. There’s the aforementioned As You Stay, plus Day Use and Hotels by Day. Those offer a wider variety of cities, but tend to focus on less-expensive hotels, and require you to book in pre-arranged time slots.
Recharge itself has plans to expand to Chicago and Los Angeles next, but hasn’t announced their next location yet.
Why Would Hotels Agree to This?
Apparently, Recharge has helped several properties turn quite a profit. Bamfo told Bloomberg, “Every single minute that you’re in a Recharge is a more valuable minute than if you were a regular overnight customer.” Using these apps, hotels can now put to use the 35% of rooms that are vacant during the day due to early check-outs and late check-ins.
A majority of Recharge hotels in San Francisco are turning six-figure annual profits based on by-the-minute reservations; some are poised to break seven figures soon.
Would you ever stay by the hour or minute while you’re on the road?
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