Hey hoteliers - Welcome back to another Hotel Architect deep dive blog!
Today we’re focusing on your demanding guests and what they really want from your hotel. It doesn't really matter whether you’re building your first cozy inn or your 50th ultra-optimized guest haven, either way, understanding your clientele is the key to building a thriving hotel empire.
Now before we start, we do have a short video on this that you can watch if you’d prefer but it doesn’t go into the nitty gritty like the blog!
Meet Your Guests
In Hotel Architect, there are six unique guest types:
- Backpackers
- Sporties
- Sunbathers
- Brats
- Business People
- The Upper Crust
Each group has its own personality, preferences, and must-haves. To check out what each type likes (and what they absolutely require), click on the People icon in your toolbar and head over to the Guests tab in game. You'll see a list of their required amenities, and their preferences that marked with green thumbs-up icons.
The table below shows the absolute requirements a guest must have to come and visit (subject to change!):
Guest Type
At first when playing, you might find yourself a bit stuck because you still can’t seem to get a certain guest type in your hotel. There could be so many different reasons for this, but it’s best to go step by step through what each guest wants and needs as a process of elimination.
If you’re struggling to hit a star rating, for example, Sunbathers require 3 star hotel, then that is your first point of call!
Why Star Ratings Matter! ⭐
Star ratings in Hotel Architect are everything. They’re the gatekeepers for which guest types even consider staying at your hotel. For example, Brats won’t even consider staying at your hotel unless it’s got a 4 star rating!
In order to unlock each star rating, there is a facility your hotel much have:
1 Star: Bathroom and laundry room + 100p
2 stars: A gym + 200p (plus previous star requirements)
3 stars: A Restaurant + 300p (plus previous star requirements)
4 stars: A Bar + 400p (plus previous star requirements)
5 Stars: A Spa + 500p (plus previous star requirements)
Slapping up a couple of paintings won’t cut it; these guests want quality and all the facilities - so make it happen hotelier! Remember your critic score can only go up by one star per visit, so 5 stars won’t simply happen overnight!
Build Smart, One Guest at a Time
The best strategy? Start simple.
Choose one guest type to focus on.
Meet their minimum requirements, especially room setups and star level.
Layer in the amenities they love to maximize satisfaction.
Once that group is thriving, you can start expanding your appeal. Want to host both Sporties and Brats? No problem = just make sure your hotel has both a gym and a bar.
Balancing guest types becomes easier once you understand how to overlap their preferences!
Hopefully that clears things up for you and will help you bring in all the guest types when creating your dream hotels!
If you haven’t already, make sure you sign up to the playtest starting soon at Wired.gg/HAplaytest
This is the first time you will be able to play on the Paris map and also with all 6 guest types, and it’s the last chance to try for free before early access so make sure you don’t miss out!